Soul Eater: A New Era
by RyanCorp
Summary: Everyone says they wish they could stop that one horrible mistake from happening, but be careful what you wish for. When the revival of Asura is stopped, things go from bad to worse slowly but surely. Just what is faith? What is doubt? Why do we do what we do? The greatest questions are brought up. Hopelessness. Regret. Greed. Envy. Demons and witches all enter the mix. Join Lance


**Foreword:**

Hello all, RyanCorp. Writer here. Although this is technically a fanfiction, I don't want the casual reader to be turned away, as it merely uses a basic framework from the source "fandom", as such I will give a brief rundown so the casual reader may understand what's going on here. In the world of Soul Eater there are special humans known as Demon Weapons. Demon Weapons, or Weapons for short, are the results of experiments by an ancient witch known as Lady Arachne. At the most basic level they are humans with the ability to transform into weapons. They are wielded by beings known as Meisters, which are simply any being who can control the weapons. However, in order to wield a weapon one must complete soul resonance. Soul resonance is when two souls can compatibly energize each other, bouncing their soul wavelength (or aura) back and forth between the two creating a higher power level.

Second of all, you must understand the concept of madness. Madness is more or less a basic level of evil. When one human eats other humans souls (murder) they slowly turn into creatures known as Kishin. Kishin are monsters which have the sole purpose of driving the world into chaos. Aside from kishins are creatures known as Clowns, which are monsters made of pure madness, no human core at all. And last of all is The Kishin Asura. Asura was once a guardian of the earth until he began eating human souls and became the original (and strongest) kishin known to mankind. To combat the madness of these beasts the Horseman Death created an academy to teach Meisters and Weapons how to fight. This academy, known as The Death Weapon Meister Academy (DWMA) serves as the main defense line between humans and kishins. However, there are more means of defense which branched off from the original guardians of the world (known as the Horsemen).

And now the immediate back story to what is happening at this stories intro. A group of rebels lead by a witch known as Medusa (witches have a bad rap for being enemies of the DWMA) has led an attack on the DWMA to release The Kishin from his prison underneath Death City (the city surrounding the DWMA). This group includes Medusa (a rebel witch) Eruka (A witch blackmailed into helping medusa) Free (an immortal werewolf persuaded to help) and Crona (the ambiguous child of Medusa with severe confidence issues and a symbiotic entity dwelling inside his/her veins). The majority of the school has been trapped in a magic box, yet a few escaped to combat the group. I believe that's all that's needed for now, enjoy!

**Chapter 1-Same Characters New Story?**

"What disturbs you sister?" A reverberating voice came forth through the stagnant air surrounding the wretched stone walls.

"Something isn't as it should be." A second, much plainer feminine voice replied.

In the open space stood two people, both covered in cloaks with pointed hats. The shorter of the two, the owner of the reverberating voice which seemed as though it was pre-recorded on a poor recording device, was a great contrast to the second being.

"I feel a great disturbance." The second continued brushing her hair from her face. Her very light blonde hair neared white in color and sashayed down from the wide brimmed pointed hat she wore which had what appeared to be a lion's head design on it.

"Can you tell what it is?" The short figure asked, one of her eyes gleaming through the shadow cast by her hat

"Not exactly…" The taller of the two responded, the faint light from the sky bouncing off of her insipid blue eyes, "But it's very familiar….It reminds me much of the attacks of Excalibur…"

"The attacks of Excalibur slice through time and space." The short one said in a tone crossed between alarm and concern.

"Exactly." The blonde said looking forth, "And that is what worries me."

"Could it just be Excalibur alone causing this?" The short one questioned, her tattered cloak fluttering about her

"No, there's not a chance…it's much more…potent…" The blonde retorted, "Mabaa…this is not a good sign…It's much like…a..."

"Dream?" Mabaa inquired

"No...not a dream…a memory." Mabaa's acquaintance replied bringing her hand to her head, her thin soft fingers gingerly resting on her forehead, "It's an odd sensation…it's like hearing a story you could swear you've heard before yet something is wrong…something has been changed, but it isn't something horrendously apparent. That feeling of unease, that you know something is amiss even though you can't determine what it is…that's what I feel."

"So what is it you plan to do about it?" Mabaa asked watching her comrade lower her hand

"There's nothing I can do at the moment." The blonde replied resting her hand on her abdomen as though she felt sick and had to push her stomach down to keep it inside, "All I can do is wait and hope the error reveals itself…"

**Not much later-Death City-Death's Room**

"…Death, I do not have much time to spare…" A voice resounded through the large room.

The room was quite spacious and tranquil. It didn't seem like a room at all, rather an open plain under a serene blue sky, clouds slowly drifting about. In the open sand protruded all manors of items, and in the room's center stood a small circular platform.

"I'm quite aware, which makes me all the more curious as to why you would take the time to speak…" A figure atop the platform replied in a surprisingly high pitched voice. It was a dark cloaked figure with a nearly cartoonish skull mask over its face, speaking into a mirror which showed a very short elderly man standing aside a tall tanned man with strange symbols across his muscular body.

"To my understanding rather recently the Death-Weapon Meister Academy was attacked." The small elder man spoke resting his diminutive figure on a wooden staff-like cane.

"Yes, it was a small assault by a rogue witch." The skull figure responded simply

"Explain." The senior quickly spoke with no sentiment.

"On the Celebration of the Academy's founding, a rogue witch known as Medusa acting on her own agenda attempted to free Asura by imbedding him with a strange substance." The skull figure began explaining

"Did she have help?" The man in the mirror questioned

"Yes." Death answered quickly, "She had the aid of another witch who we believe to have been pressured into aiding her, a young meister, and a wolf who we have yet to discover the motives of."

"So you have indeed captured the assailants?" The man asked

"We have." Death continued, "Before entrapping the majority of shibushen, a select handful were able to escape and stop the attack…in the process however…much happened…"

"Give the short version, I don't have much time." The muscular man aside the elder harshly interrupted

"…After breaking through the obstacles Medusa had left, everything culminated in one moment…" Death began looking downwards as he recollected, "A few of our meisters had made it into the tomb of Asura, they had to fight through his madness along with Medusa's help…Meanwhile one of my death scythes and one of my teachers were caught in conflict with Medusa herself…my students fought through the madness and destroyed the syringe of Medusa's compound, stopping the resurrection from occurring…however this was at the cost of one of my teachers…Professor Stein was killed by medusa, my death scythe then disposed of her…"

"You keep mentioning some substance that this witch was trying to input into the kishin." The tanned man burst out again, "What was it?"

"…I don't know, we're testing it as we speak." Death replied, "It appears to be the same substance one of the assailants uses s a weapon."

"Do you have said prisoner?" The elder man questioned

"Yes. We are dealing with the child." Death nodded

"Master Famine! You're out of time, we need your assistance!" A female voice yelled out from the mirror

"Brother." The elder man said as he held his hand up to silence the voice, "Something about this attack has given me an extremely uneasy feeling. I am more than busy with my own problems, however I feel you should not take this instant lightly…something is amiss…and though nothing may come of this today or tomorrow…I feel something may come of it…"

**Thirteen and a Half Years Later**

"Are you still looking at that thing?" A feminine voice called out through the kitchen.

By all means it was not a comfortable room. It was cramped, filled with metal, and the air was as hot as the stoves that crammed the area. Leaning on one of the metal pushcarts was a young man in his early twenties if that, as it looked like he was still just a teenager, the only thing giving credit to his age being a small trimmed triangular goatee.

"Why shouldn't I?" The man replied in a wholly typical voice as he refolded the paper along the creases plainly present along it.

"Because, all this vigilante superhero nonsense is stupid." The woman replied as she flipped a pan of steaming rice, her clean white apron fitting the mid twenty-year old girl rather modestly, "Leave it to the Shibushen, they handle that stuff for a reason."

"Yeah that's what everybody says," The man replied brushing his brows sweat and wiping it along the small folded messy apron he wore

"Well, you can't say they aren't doing a good job." The woman replied as she shifted a few feet down and grabbed a hold of a large pristine knife, "It's been nearly two decades since there was even a major incident, and even then they handled it."

"Rachel, you can't really believe nothing gets past them." The man retorted with a grimace, "Of course you grew up feeling safe, you lived in Death City for most of your life. I lived there all of three weeks before the Founding Eve attack."

"Either way Lance, you aren't a Demon Weapon, or a meister" Rachel snapped as she sliced through the greens before her, "And besides, even if you wanted to be, you're well past the age they accept."

"Which is stupid! If you can grip a handle, you can wield a weapon against a Kishin." lance replied annoyed as he dipped his head into a hairnet.

"That kind of thinking is exactly why you're going to end up getting yourself, or your little cronies, hurt." Rachel rejoined lifting her blade and emptying its contents into a pan, "You aren't a shibushen, you're a normal person. You have to learn to appreciate your place in life….all this talk of changing the world and fighting is exactly the kind of stuff that leads people into bad ways."

"Hmph" Lance huffed as he began walking forth through the crowded space, "I know I can make a difference if people gave me a shot."

"Lance, I've known you since we were little." Rachel began looking at her companion, "You're a good person, but your energy is misplaced. Stop looking at the clouds and start focusing on the road before you. It's the only way you can ever be satisfied in life."

As Lance looked downwards, contemplating the thought, a sudden clamor pulled him right out of consideration.

"…oh no…" Rachel sighed as the ringtone blurted out, Lance quickly grabbing a hold of his phone.

"Hello?" Lance answered pulling the phone to his ear, "…right, I'll be there soon."

"Let me guess….a Kishin." Rachel said leaning on her hand and looking up at Lance with a glower

"Righty-o" Lance answered happily ripping off his disheveled apron and hairnet, "And the Shibushen aren't doing anything about it, that means it's up to me!"

"No it doesn't." Rachel scowled, "You know I really should fire you for always taking off like this."

"Probably." Lance replied throwing a leather jacket on, "But you won't."

"What makes you so sure?" Rachel asked turning and resting her hands on her hips in a pout

"Intuition." Lance replied with a cheesy smile as he ran forth from the kitchen, a new mission filling his mind.

**Elsewhere-Not Much later**

"…Didn't you call him?!" a young boy shouted as he covered his head behind a brick wall.

The boy was quite the opposite of Lance in that he looked quite mature for his age. Although we was clearly a teenager, he looked old, his body features sharp and developed. He wore an old set of glasses which looked flimsy and a bit large for his face, the thickness of the lenses making it appear as if his head had a hole on its side. Clenched in his hand was a bow. By all means it looked like a typical bow, curved like the letter C with a string tightly pulling its edges, yet there was something off about.

"Of course I did!" A second voice replied seemingly from nowhere.

As this voice called out, a large clash could be heard coming from the opposite side of the bricks, as though something was throwing itself against it.

"Then what's taking so long?" The boy asked looking down at his bow, in the gleam of its body appeared an image of another boy. This second teenager was had short brown hair and fair skin, that being all determinable from the gleam.

"I don't know, the restaurant is a solid hour or two away." The boy in the boy replied lifting his hands up in a shrug

As the bow child finished his sentence four very sharp knife-like blades sliced through the brick inches above the others head. The first boy shot his head up, some of his light brown, almost reddish, hair cut by the blades.

"Son of a b…" The boy began before the brick wall shot forth, throwing him across the room into a table which broke under his weight.

"Food!" A growling voice roared as the boy lifted himself up from the floor to see his enemy.

It was quite an unholy monstrosity standing before him. Its hide was a sickly pale green covered with wavering stripes of a dark green. But that wasn't the grotesque aspect, the creature had a small head with large pitch black unblinking eyes situated just above a gaping mouth of needle like teeth. One of its arms was quite large covered in a thick metal plate armor leading into its hand of four sharp blades.

"Not Food!" The boy yelled out

"Archer, this doesn't seem like a great plan." The boy in the bow called out as his wielding ally rested his fingers on the bow string.

"Greg, relax, I know what I'm doing." Archer replied as the beast roared, a thick drool outpouring through its mouth.

Archer didn't even blink as he lifted the bow and pulled back the string in a fluid motion. As he pulled back on the string an arrow formed of a sparkling light. Archer unleashed the arrow of light as the beast pounced, its three pronged tongue hanging from its mouth. The arrow shot straight into the neck of the beast, yet it did not deter the creature and in an instant the beast was atop Archer.

"Still convinced it was a good idea?" Greg asked as Archer pushed the bow against the creatures neck and shoulder, pushing back its swishing claw and its snapping teeth.

"Please no sass right now!" Archer yelled back moving his feet forth and shooting them into the creature, flipping it off of himself, allowing the boy the time to roll away from his position and replant his feet.

"Fua!" The beast roared as it thrashed back to its feet

"So let's do it" Archer said with a smirk as he rested his fingers on the bow's string, his archery glove worn in the finger tips from overuse.

The beast let forth another snarling growl as it leapt once again. In a lightning quick instant Archer had unleashed three arrows of light before diving out of the beasts path. All three arrows struck, yet did no significant damage and the beast was charging once again, its feet scratching the ground for traction.

Archer pulled back the bow string with two light arrows coming forth, these seeming different, the fletching of these being nonexistent. The beast lunged yet again, and Archer replied with a shot, both of his arrows flying past the creatures head. Behind the arrows in the air was a thin string of light, much like a rope, Archer fell backwards and slid downwards allowing the beast to pass over him. As the beast did so, archer opened the palm of his hand letting lose the end of the two ropes which flew upwards entangling the beast's neck.

"Bye-bye" Archer declared springing to his feet and pulling back the bowstring summoning forth a new arrow, under this one's point being a small sphere

Archer unleashed his fingers and the arrow whished through the air. The entangled beast turned just in time to allow the arrow a stopping point in its left eye. Soon followed a loud bang accompanied by a cloud of dust and shrapnel from the room. Archer stood taking in deep breaths as the cloud slowly dissipated.

"I think we got 'em" Archer said lowering his bow

"Pain!" A loud snarl interrupted Archer's momentary victory, from the cloud sprung forth the beast, Archer's hand not yet ready on his bow.

The beast careened through the air towards the surprised Archer. However, as the beast neared the boy, its claws drawn, a metal blade at the end of a wooden staff shot forth directly into the beast's cheek with such force it threw the beast off course and tumbling down past Archer.

"I could have sworn you said you'd wait." Lance called out taking a step forth through the demolished wall, a large six foot long spear in his hand, its metal head glistening.

"I did, it found me!" Archer called out

A loud snap filled the air and the beast leapt back into the air, its arms outstretched towards Archer. Lance didn't give it the opportunity and threw forth his spear quickly, impaling the creature through the chest and pinning it against the adjacent wall.

"…I came all this way for that?" Lance asked watching the beast turn into a black whirling mass and dissipate leaving behind a red scaly steaming orb of energy.

"I'm pretty sure we wore him down." Archer retorted as his bow began glowing, quickly changing shape into Greg.

"We?!" A feminine voice suddenly called out, "Last I checked, I wore it down and you hid!"

"No, you got yourself knocked out!" Archer called back as a girl stepped through the broken wall.

She was around Archer's age, perhaps a bit older. She wore tight black pants with black boots coming up mid shin. She had a black and white striped tank top on with a loose fitting black jacket thrown over, hanging halfway off showing her freckled pale shoulder. Her long straight red hair whipped about her face as she stomped her feet. She had a pale complexion with a light amount of freckles along with perhaps a bit much eyeliner.

"I wasn't knocked out! I was letting it think that while I regained my energy!" The girl stomped once again.

"Pretty sure you were knocked out…" Another voice replied stepping through the rubble.

This voice belonged to a man, a man roughly Lance's age. He was rather sleek and thin in figure, yet there was something very off about him. He wore cargo shorts and a green shirt, but that wasn't the odd part, rather it was his bluish grey skin. Perhaps it was his teeth, all pointed like triangular fangs. Or it may even have been the fins protruding from his forearms, for this boy was not a human, but a Mer, a member of a humanoid fish people race.

"I wasn't! I could have taken this joker!" The girl pouted once again

"Shark-bait, calm down." Archer said walking towards the orb

"Stop calling me that!" the girl retorted, "It's Skylar!"

"Potato Potato" Archer waved his hand, "So who gets the soul this time?"

"I think Greg got it last time." Lance replied picking up one of his spears, as he did so it splintered down the middle, falling in two.

"Yeah, I did, all yours Stanley." Greg confirmed watching Archer throw the soul to the grey skinned fish man.

"Broke another one?" Archer asked watching Lance try to reconnect the two splintered ends of his broken weapon, Stanley opening his mouth wide as he prepared to eat the kishin soul.

"Yea…" Lance began to reply before a horrendous image filled his head.

It was only for a moment or two, as quick as a flash, but it was very distinct. It was a man bound in wrappings all across his body. The wrappings had what appeared to be three eyes on the face of the man. And for just an instant, standing aside the wrapped being a shadowed figure appeared, a woman with twisting blonde hair.

**Not Much Later**

"So you actually got the location?" Lance asked, his car flying as fast as it could across the empty road

"You make it sound like it was easy…" Archer replied lowering a metallic bottle from his lips, "It wasn't easy…at all…but yes, I got it."

"So where is it?" Lance asked turning his head to Archer for a moment, "Do you think we can…"

"Are you serious, you already want to go?" Archer asked in disbelief

"I'm already taking the time from work anyway." Lance replied taking a quick glance at the rear view mirror, nothing in sight, "Plus, how could you not want to go?"

"It's not that I don't want to go, it's that I just took on a damn kishin, who knows what might show up in the market?" Archer replied, "It's not like the market will go anywhere, and I rather we all go together."

"It's a market, they sell things, they don't fight." Lance replied, "Besides, Skylar took a beating, she really needs the rest, you and Greg are fine…come on man…when have I ever steered you wrong?"

"Every time you say that my hair starts to stand up on end." Greg interrupted from the back seat

"Archer…seriously…" Lance said turning to look into Archer's eyes, "You know I would lay down my life for you, Greg, Stanley, or Skylar…"

Just as Lance said this he had a horrendous image flash across his mind once again. This time it wasn't the bandaged man, rather it was Skylar…dead. Her neck snapped and her head dangling, Lance's hand gripping her neck. Just above the corpse stood the same blonde woman with her hair twisted and her grin devilish.

"…Fine…" Archer groaned, "But if anything at all goes wrong, I will blame you."

"You can't be serious!" Greg called out

"Come on Greg, you never know, we might find something useful too." Archer retorted

"This is ridiculous." Greg huffed, "I have a bad feeling about thus…"

**Elsewhere**

"…I have a bad feeling about this…" A feminine voice said in the dark room, a taller figure standing beside a shorter one, both clearly wearing cloaks and pointed hats

"The world we live in is a confusing one." The taller figure replied, her voice revealing herself to be Luna, her blue eyes twinkling in the dim light, "And every now and then you must take matters into your own hands to correct mistakes."

"But this plan is practically insane…" The shorter figure replied clenching her fist, her pale skin clashing with the black cloak she wore, her wide brimmed pointed hat covering her face, the fabric atop it folding into what looked like a lioness.

"I know….and I fear what may come of it…" Luna replied lifting a glass orb from its golden holder

"Then why are we doing it?!" The smaller one retorted, her voice giving away her younger age quite clearly

"Silence child." Luna snapped, a swirling blue mist filling the orb and giving off a glow, "I do what I do for my child, for the world in which my child lives…"

"Then why don…" The lioness began

"Because…" Luna interrupted, "Youths inexperience causes them to doubt what their elders are doing…the young should watch their tongues and do as instructed…understood?"

"Yes…" The lioness said with a small bow, "…mother…"

**Chapter 2-The Shibushen?**

"The Death Weapon Meister Academy…different than I thought it would be…" A teenager said looking at the large building, his heels hanging over the enormous flight of stairs behind him.

It was a Hispanic teenager, his skin slightly tanned yet not nearly bronze. He had mid length black wavy hair and the typical brown eyes of his ethnicity. He wore an open black hoodie which had a swirling midnight purple design along its side.

"What were you expecting?" The blonde haired comrade beside him asked

"I don't know…darker?" The boy replied resting his hands on his hips staring up at the large skull like roof, the red spires protruding from it, and the enormous candles.

"Ryan, just because it's death doesn't mean it has to be dark…" The blonde standing beside the boy retorted waving their finger

"Guess that's true…" Ryan nodded, "It's like saying just because you're a girl means you have to like the color pink…"

"Well…" The girl hummed tilting her head, her blonde ponytail flopping downwards onto her blue shirt.

She was a unique contrast to her friend, her fair skin, blonde hair, and dark purple eyes. She wore a short sleeved blue collared shirt along with pants coming down to her mid shin. Along her breast dangled a silver necklace baring an inverted cross which glimmered in the sun.

"…I do like the color pink, but that is the general idea, yes." The girl, Mary, replied

"So what exactly does the letter say again?" Ryan asked looking around at the stunning lack of students walking

"Ahem" Mary began,

"Greetings, my name is Death. You have received this letter because you are being invited to live, study, and train at the Death Weapon Meister Academy (DWMA). We stand as a defense against the forces of evil which wish to plunge the world into chaos and drag humanity into the very depths of fear and madness; the demons known as kishin and there insatiable hunger for destruction and madness. To ensure the kishin never regain their hold on this world. I, The Grim Reaper, established this academy. So basically we are an organization created to protect and preserve peace.

"We train our students as either meisters or weapons, we train them how to resonate and control there soul wavelengths, and most importantly we train them to protect this world. Now that you have reached the proper age your soul is in the perfect stage for training, you now can have your own morals, you now can become a true shibusen, a true protector of others; your family, friends, and your world. In this package I have provided a mirror, to contact me, simply breath on the mirror and write "52-52-564"…it makes more sense in Japanese. I will leave this letter short, we are waiting on you"

"That's it?" Ryan asked

"I've re-read the entire thing to you about nine times now, that's it." Mary retorted, "That and when we were meant to arrive…which is in about twenty minutes…"

"Maybe it will make more sense inside…" Ryan said walking forth to the large wooden doors

"…hopefully…" Mary sighed following after.

The instant Ryan heaved open the large wooden door both he and Mary could see the halls swarming with students. All manors of students filled the building, and all carried on about their business.

"…Wow…" Ryan said in awe as he walked forth down the pristine hallway, as he did so he noticed a teacher walking by in the opposite direction talking with a student.

She was a relatively young teacher, clearly in her twenties. She had ash blonde hair and wore a typical dress. Oddly enough she also wore a large black coat and white gloves.

"It's certainly more lively inside than out." Mary said amazed looking at the students.

Ryan locked eyes with the teacher for a moment, he could feel an odd sensation, as though he knew the woman, or as if her soul was connected to his. But the feeling was gone the instant the strangers turned from each other.

"…Uhh, yeah…amazing." Ryan replied looking forward

**Twenty Miles out of the DWMA**

"This is it?" Lance asked looking at the have demolished columns around a stone cut shack looking building

"Yeah, this is where it's supposed to be." Archer replied with a yawn

"I don't think you can qualify that as a shack." Lance retorted looking at 6the small building which appeared as though it would topple at any moment

"I don't know what you expect from an underground magical artifact market." Archer retorted stretching his arms, "Even the Shibushen don't know about this place, and they're like thirty minutes away, it probably has to look this way to stay hidden."

"Well…" Lance said a bit anxious as he opened his door, "Let's check it out."

"Greg wake up!" Archer called out inside the car as Lance closed the door.

It really was practically the middle of nowhere. They were surrounded by desert as far as the eye could see. The sun beat down on the ground with a passion. No cacti were in sight, no animals, nothing to signify life.

Lance slowly walked to the fixture allowing the carvings on the pillars to appear. They were odd swirls and letters in some strange mystic language. Stars and circles also joined the cryptic markings.

"Wards?" Lance questioned running his hand across part of the pillar, the lettering momentarily glowing red.

Lance moved forth to the shack, more specifically the misplaced thick wooden door clashing against the stone exterior. The door itself was littered with the markings, barely any bare spots on it. Even the thick iron handle had patterns carved into it. Someone clearly had a distinct purpose for the markings.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Greg asked walking up behind Lance alongside archer, both boys stretching from their exhaustion.

Lance extended his hand and grasped the iron handle. The markings on the handle began to glimmer as though the iron was super heated, yet no pain was felt by Lance. He slowly pulled open the thick door half expecting to be greeted with nothing, half expecting to see a swirling portal. What he saw was neither.

"A staircase?" Archer asked looking into the stone shack, sure enough the ground being taken away and replaced with a sandstone staircase.

"Well that's kind of anti-climactic." Greg added watching Lance begin to walk down the steps

"Do you smell that?" Lance asked as Archer and Greg followed after him down the steps

"Eggs?" Greg responded

"Sulfur." Lance answered continuing forth

"So?" Archer said confused

"So, sulfur is a common smell that accompanies magical items." Lance replied reaching the bottom of the steps, "…We found it…"

Archer and Greg reached the bottom and stood beside Lance in awe. There before their eyes was an astounding sight. The opening was enormous, reaching at least upwards of thirty feet. All along the cavern shelves lined up reaching into the air. Each shelf was stocked with all types of items. Some looked mundane: pots, pans, clothes. But other items looked outlandish: Suits of armor, golden spheres with engravings along them, pendants, blades, caged animals.

But these were no normal animals, no they were far from the regular. Aside from a cage of rats, a cage of kittens, and a cage of birds, sat a cage with a Bengal tiger. Beside the tiger was a chained horse, rather, a chained unicorn as the beast had a long stretching horn. In the air fluttered what appeared to be large mantises, yet they had long scorpion-like tails.

Even more astounding were the customers. These were not run of the mill people, no, these were fantastical beings. A woman dressed in white had stitches all along her body and held an umbrella which had a human hand acting as the handle. Behind the glass counter of jewelry stood an enormous red hairless primate looking troll, its hand having two fingers and a thumb on either side of its palm, that along with its long face, tusks, and horns, made it quite the odd sight. Sitting atop a carriage was a spider like beast with claws for hands and a bull-like skull for a head.

"Holy sh…" Lance began

**Death Weapon Meister Academy**

"Alright everyone I'm just going to do a quick name check to see who's here…" A voice called out amongst the crowded room of students talking to one another, "Simply raise your hand when I call your name…Alice…Edward….Chris…Emily…Gwen…William…Jack…Mary…Ryan…Ian…"

As the blue skinned man called out the names through his emotionless face, Ryan couldn't help but glance around the room. There was a staggering scarcity of new Shibushen. He couldn't quite explain it, but he felt as though there should be more.

"…Cindy Lou…Daniel…Taijus …Derrick…Darryl…" The teacher continued, his 'Sid' name tag slowly falling off his vest, the dark skinned female nurse beside him scribbling something down on her writing pad, her linen bandages seeming very peculiar.

"…this feels…off…" Ryan said quietly to himself looking around

"You feel it too?" A voice beside Ryan whispered

Ryan turned his head to see the boy standing next to him. It was a blonde haired kid crossing his arms and looking forward. He was about the same height as Ryan, but the similarities stopped there. He had 'dirty' blonde hair and green eyes. He had on khaki pants which had zippers around the knees. And he wore a dark red t-shirt which allowed his necklace to show. His necklace was a simple silver piece of an odd symbol looking much like the number four.

"Yeah…" Ryan nodded

"…maybe it's just the awkwardness of having your old partner meet your new partner." The blonde whispered back with a wide grin

"Shut up Ian." Ryan nudged the boy with his elbow, "You're the one that moved, and a meister needs a weapon."

"Yeah yeah, no hard feelings." Ian whispered back watching the zombie Sid look through his notes, "I'm sure your time with Mary has been…enlightening…"

"…candle jokes?" Ryan asked annoyed, "You didn't get your fill already?"

"I know, something else should SPARK my interest…" Ian retorted, his grin growing, "But I just can't find something that SHINEs so bright, or that can…"

"Mister Blakes?" The bandaged nurse asked suddenly and quite shocked as the entry door swung open.

Everyone turned around quickly to see who had walked through the door. There he stood, a man whose aura alone intimidated. He was in his twenties but carried himself as though he had the experience of a thousand wars. He had short black hair which was slightly spiked in the front. He had fair skin which looked slightly tanned by the sun. His emerald green eyes practically glowed even in the light. He wore a leather jacket which looked partially singed and had stitches all over it. His black pants had several pockets, the zippers across all of them clinking as he moved forth.

"Lord Death has requested Sid." The man spoke simply, all of the students staring

"…Brian Blakes…" One of the student's voices came through the crowd of whispers

"The youngest death Scythe in history…" Another voice added

"Yes sir, Knieves, handle the students." The Zombie nodded before following after Blakes.

"Uhm…alright, students we're going to try and split up into Meister-Weapon pairs now…" Knieves voice could be heard as the door closed.

"What's going on?" Sid asked ripping off his name tag and crumpling it in his hand

"Shinigami will explain it all." Brian replied taking a sharp turn, as he did so a woman came into view.

She was around the age of Brian and shared many of his traits. She had long black hair with its bangs cut straight just above her brow. She had fair skin slightly tanned by the sun and her red pupils seemed to glow in the light. She wore a blue shirt dark blue sweater which held an odd skull symbol on its shoulder along with a simple word: Spartoi.

**The Market**

"…nothing as of yet, but I'm still looking…" A man's voice whispered to a small rectangle he held in his hand. The candle light of the building around him slightly glimmered off the rectangle revealing itself to be a pocket mirror. The man quickly tucked the mirror away and began casually walking, despite the two long strands of hair alongside his shaven head and his thick glasses making him seem quite odd.

"This is amazing…" Lance whispered to himself walking past the peculiar man, his head looking upwards at the spectacular shelves of items.

Lance continued on his walk until he reached a large painting on the wall. He was far too distracted by the splendors before him to notice the snow ski behind him as he took a few steps back. Sure enough, his foot struck the board and he fell backwards into the painting.

But something most astounding occurred, he fell through the painting. The piece didn't rip, yet he found himself tumbling alongside the hard floor of the opposite side.

"Ow…" Lance groaned looking upwards at what appeared to be a large tube filled with papers.

"Oh my!" A voice called out, Lance still clenching one of his eyes and rubbing his head, "Are you okay?"

"Uggh…yeah…my fault…" Lance replied hearing what sounded like clanking metal before he felt something pull his arm upwards, "Thank…you…"

Before the poor man could finish his gratitude he was astounded by what he saw. For what had helped him up was indeed a female, but not a human female.

The female that had aided lance was by far the most astounding creature he had seen in his life, beginning to describe such a creature causing as much challenge as trying to comprehend it when it aids you. She was slightly on the short side, but she was rather petite in stature, thin and lean. She wore a brown leather loincloth which reached to about her mid shin. She had on a brown leather brassiere like piece which left her stomach out yet had small pieces of white fabric covering her shoulders. Overall her clothing wouldn't have offered much to the imagination had she been human, but the rest of her made everything anyone's guess.

She did not have human hands nor feet by any means. She had hooves. Where her fingers should have been she had small hooves, and where her toes should have been she had large hooves. Coming off the hooves to her shin on her legs and her forearms on her arms was grayish fur. Even the 'skin' on her arms and stomach was actually very thin pale fur with a few brown speckles resembling freckles.

But what had truly grasped lance's attention was the woman's face. Her nose and forehead were fairly flat, or at least the fur covering them would suggest. Over her nose and past her brow was white fur with a few black circles and a brown diamond, all appearing as a natural design. The surrounding of her deep brown eyes was black, along with her lips. And to top it off the small horns protruded upwards from just behind her temple.

Despite all of this, the woman still retained some odd form of beauty. Her face, although different, retained many human elements to it which carried beauty, even cuteness. Atop her head she had somewhat short brown hair, which was most likely fur, yet it seemed much like women's hair. And even with her long pointed ears protruding from the side of her head, she was beautiful.

"Are you okay? Do you need bandages?" The creature asked gingerly palpating the back of lance's head with her hoof

"No, I'm fine, thank you." Lance replied with a smile, the woman's light voice enthralling him for a moment before he realized there was a chain connecting her leg to a metal shackle in the ground, "What's going on here?"

"You aren't a customer?' The fawn asked surprised, "...Then how did you find this place?!"

"Woah, calm down" Lance retorted seeing the panic in the woman's eyes, "What are you talking about?"

"You don't know…" The fawn said to herself, "Okay, listen closely, listen quickly!"

"Alright, go…" lance replied completely taken off guard

"Okay, I am a slave here, they force me to write down maps, spells, and all manner of things to sell…" The fawn began in panic, "Go tell the DWMA where this place is! They forced me to ward it so it couldn't be found, but they can help! I know they can!"

"What's going on here!?" A booming voice asked as the red troll stuck its head through what had been the painting

"…oh no…" The fawn said in panic, "Run! Run Now!"

"No." Lance said simply holding his arms out in front of the woman, blocking the enormous beast from her, "The DWMA wouldn't spare the time, but lucky for you, Lance is here."

"Haha, puny human thinks it can defeat me?" The troll laughed in a hearty voice

"No…" Lance replied reaching into his jacket and pulling forth three small metal rods bound together before quickly pulling them apart and connecting them together in a flash, creating a staff, "I know."

**DWMA Death Room**

"And I believe that completes our party…" The high pitched somewhat goofy voice of the grim reaper spoke watching Brian, the woman, and Sid walk down the walkway.

"So what exactly was so important you had to drag us all here?!" A loud voice burst through the crowd, the mid twenty blue haired man who owned the voice tapped his fingers annoyed.

"Black Star shut up!" A second voice yelled out, this one's owner was quite different.

It was a young man around the first's age, but with no other similarities. He wore a fine black suit, a silver skull holding its collar together. His black hair had three horizontal white lines stretching halfway across his head.

"All of you calm down, I called you here for a reason." Death called out overlooking the small crowd of people.

"What is it master Shinigami?" The ash blonde teacher from the hall asked

"..Trouble brewing…" Death replied turning from face to face, "What I am about to speak of stays within this group...the Spartoi have a new prime objective…"

**The Market**

"Uhm Lance…" the fawn meekly spoke lightly tapping her guardian on the shoulder

"Yes?" Lance asked holding his staff out with one hand, his other hand held back lightly holding the girl by the hip

"That's a City Troll, they aren't exactly like humans when fought…" The woman said poking her head out over Lance's shoulder

"That's right tiny!" The Troll growled slamming its enormous fists into the ground

"I figured." Lance replied holding the woman back, her hip bone clearly palpable, providing evidence to her lack of nourishment, "But it can't be much different than a kishin…"

"You've fought kishin?" The female asked poking her head out yet again

"Yup, you're in good hands…" Lance replied

"Enough talk!" The troll roared

"Then fight me." Lance retorted with a smug grin

**DWMA Death Room**

"I'm sure you all recall the night Medusa tried to release Asura." Death began, "After all…most of you were there…"

The ash blonde looked downwards upset as she recalled the night. For a moment she recalled running into the room where the corpse of a good friend and mentor laid.

"What I did not tell you all, is that soon after that event, I received a message from someone I would never have expected…Famine." Death spoke

"The Famine?!" The blue haired man called out

"Yes." Death nodded, "He told me that he felt uneasy of the situation…he said he felt as though something bad would come of it."

"But we handled the situation quite thoroughly Lord Death." A black haired, rather well endowed, woman standing beside the blue haired man interrupted

"Crona has even confirmed that Medusa's wavelength is no longer present." A white haired man wearing a yellow jacket added, his sharp teeth showing through his speech.

"I understand." Death nodded, "But Famine has said his feeling has increased ten-fold. He says he can feel something very wrong in the air, and he claims it's somehow connected to that night…"

**The Market**

The red beast threw its fist forth, Lance swung his metal staff forth with great force. The two forces met and canceled each other out. Lance didn't waist a moment to spin the staff around for another swing. The metal piece quickly found its mark, the trolls face.

The fawn let out a scream before covering her mouth with both hooves. She backed away as the Troll thrashed its arms about. Lance used his legs strength to flip himself in an armless cart-wheel motion before swinging the staff again. This time the rod struck the beast in the back of the head, but with a cost. The third segment of the staff broke off, leaving the weapon notably shorter.

"Damn it…" Lance groaned looking at the broken end

"Don't underestimate me!" The Troll roared swinging its arm around in a wide swing, lance quickly throwing himself backwards.

**DWMA Death Room**

"The reason I say something now is because Ms. Yumi has made an interesting point to me…" Death continued, "These incoming students were either conceived or born around the time of Medusa's attempt…"

"So what?" The blue haired man asked crossing his arms, revealing a black star on his shoulder.

"With Famine's disturbance at its peak, I feel it may have something to do with these students." Death replied, "There's a chance Medusa may have experimented on the children…or perhaps the battles unleashed such an acute soul wavelength that these children have been empowered…"

"These theories are ridiculous." Black Star called out

"I thought so too." Death nodded with a tilt of his head, "But it's the best we have at the moment, and either way it was time you all knew…we need to find out what happened that is causing this disturbance."

**The Market**

"…five two…five two…" The bald headed glasses wearing man began as he slowly wrote in the fogged mirror

Just as the man wrote the last few digits of his rhyme, a loud scream filled the air. He shot his head around just in time to see the enormous troll fly through the panting with lance talking the beast.

"Ox…?" The high pitched voice of Death asked, the odd glass wearing man turning to the tussling duo.

"Lord Shinigami….you might want to see this…" Ox replied watching Lance throw his fists repeatedly into the Troll's face

"You think you're some big bad Troll?! Huh?!" Lance asked holding the trolls long head up by the collar of its brown cloak, "You think forcing women to do your work is alright?!"

"No! No! I'm sorry!" The Troll cried back, its left eye swelling up

"You're sorry?! You don't have to be sorry to me, I'm the one beating your as…" Lance growled, "Apologize to Faun! "

As he said this, the woman slowly exited the painting, the shackle from her foot broken. She held the broken chain between her arm hooves, proud to finally be free of the contraption.

"Fa…" The Troll began before lance threw his fist into its face once again

"That isn't how you address a lady!" Lance yelled out as a small crowd formed around the scene, Archer and Greg watching half amazed half annoyed.

"M-Miss Faunel…" The Troll began

"When you speak to someone you look them in the damn eyes!" Lance yelled out, the troll flinching

"…Miss Faunel…I'm sorry…" The Troll cried

"For what?!" Lance asked tightening his grip on the creature's cloak

"…for imprisoning you and f-forcing you to labor…" The Troll finished

"Is that all?!" Lance asked

"Lance!" The woman called out, lance quickly turning his head back, "That's enough…don't sink to his level."

Lance looked at the woman, one of her arms dangling down, the second bent to grasp her bicep as though she was nervous or shy. He couldn't help but feel for the poor creature, something about it really connected to him and he couldn't bear to see it in that way.

"…okay…" lance replied softly, releasing the Troll and rising to his feet.

"That…was quite a show…" Ox called out slowly clapping his hands, the mirror propped on the shelf showing the white skull mask of death.

"Thanks?" Lance said confused as Greg and Archer walked up behind him

"You know…we could really use someone with your talents." Ox said nodding at the man

"We?" Lance questioned

"The Death Weapon Meister Academy."

**Chapter 3-Resonance of the Soul?**

"Okay everyone settle down, I know you're all probably really nervous or excited, or you think you're on top of the world because you have a weapon or a meister or whatever." A teachers voice called out, his long sharp fingernails slowly tapping on the wooden desk before him, the hair on the back of his hand oddly follow the motion, "For now keep that energy, you'll need it…because today we will go over the most fundamental element in a weapon-meister relationship. Whether you're in combat together or just hanging out, there's one very common element that will always bind you….Soul Resonance."

"So let me get this straight, you want me…us…to join the shibushen?" Lance asked shocked

"In short, yes." Ox replied nodding his head with a large smile, the light reflection of his thick glasses not allowing his eyes to be seen

"But isn't Lance a bit too old?" Greg asked to which Lance and Archer shot him a look, "…sorry…just saying…"

"Well if he was untrained I would say yes." Ox Ford replied honestly, "But he's shown quite some skill without a true weapon, he took down a City Troll. They don't exactly get taken down easily by normal humans."

"Still doesn't this seem…I don't know…sudden?" Archer asked

"Just so you understand, the DWMA has been after this market for years." Ox Ford began, "And without any help, the lot of you not only found it, but took down the proprietor , discovered the whereabouts of the illegal charms, and freed a prisoner…I'd say I'm thoroughly impressed, and Mister Death has agreed."

"Death?!" The three men spouted in shocked unison as the small pocket mirror containing the face of Death came into their view

"Soul Resonance in the most simplistic definition imaginable is when two soul wavelengths operate on the same frequency and amplify each other." The man continued scribbling on the large chalk board, "Every soul gives off a wavelength that some can feel, that is known quite clearly as the Soul Wavelength. Now, when two wavelengths are compatible they can perform soul resonance, as I described it. This resonance has the ability to increase the senses, strength, and even intelligence in some instances of the performing members…"

"I understand it's a lot to think over." Ford nodded, "By all means take your time, go sleep on it, and come up with a…"

"Alright." Lance replied simply to the shock of Archer and Greg

"What? You're agreeing just like that?!" Archer asked looking with wide eyes at Lance

"I thought you hated the DWMA! But now you want to join them?!" Greg added

"I never said I hate the DWMA." Lance replied picking up his busted staff from the ground, "I just said they miss too much. But I figure if they give us the chance, we can fix that."

"Us?" Greg and Archer asked in unison

"If I'm going to join the Shibushen, I have a few terms." Lance said turning to Ford

"Well…if they're reasonable…" Ford stuttered, a bit uneasy at Lance's brazenness

"First and most importantly." Lance began, "Archer, Greg, Skylar, and Stanely shall all have their spots secured in the academy."

"…Well…I suppose that's quite reasonable…" Ford stuttered

"Second." Lance continued, "I shall continue to operate as I do, if I need assistance I will ask for it and you shall provide it, however if my assistance is needed I may consider it."

"I guess that's reasona…" Ford began thinking a bit

"Third our rooms shall be paid for." Lance carried on, "Fourth and this one is rather specific."

"Yes?" Ford asked

"She gets to come to." Lance replied pointing to Faunel who looked just as shocked as Ford.

"This is your first day, so I don't expect any of you to even begin to grasp how to resonate souls…" The man said looking out over the crowd of students, his deep red pupils mesmerizing the room, his unkempt goatee and mustache fighting his pale lips, "But it is the foundation of what we do. Remember that. When I was a student, back before it was Mister Ula or Professor, back when it was just Drake…that was what my teacher focused on. Behind the weapon and the wielder are two souls that must meet the ultimate form of partnership in order to truly excel…interestingly enough, that's also why it isn't uncommon for meister and weapon to end up marrying."

"I'm sorry?" Faunel asked confused, her large watery brown eyes enticing Lance.

"Well if I'm going to be a meister at the DWMA I'll need a weapon. And if you're going to be a free woman you'll need a home, what better place than Death City?" Lance asked.

"B-but…I'm not a demon weapon…" Faunel replied apologetically

"Let's just say you are, that way I won't need to get some shmuck weapon to deal with and you get a new home." Lance replied with a comforting smile, "What do you say?"

"How many of you know about the witch Arachne?" the teacher asked turning around quickly, his long black ragged coattails fluttering with the movement, "Hopefully all of you weapons, because she's the reason you're here. She was a rogue witch who had tried to create a new breed of…well…weapons for her disposal. Not much is known of her first attempt, what are known as the Black Tears. But her second attempt spawned what would go on to be all of you….And the most unsettling fact of Arachne is that her soul was never recovered, although we believe her to be dead, there is indeed a very slight chance she may in fact be living somewhere…hiding and plotting…"

"So is it a deal?" Lance asked putting his hand forth

"But…just between us…" The teacher Drake said leaning on his podium, "Could you imagine what might have happened had she returned?"

Faunel smiled as she slowly outstretched her arm, her small hoof finding its way to Lance's hand.

"I mean, the question ponders my mind." Drake continued looking around the room at the new students, "What would have happened if Arachne came back…or Medusa lived…or worse…what if Asura was indeed released? What would have changed? Would we even be anywhere near where we are now?"

"Alright then, I guess you have a so called 'weapon'" Ford grinned

"Oh, I know just the thing!" Faunel retorted holding her hoof up before darting off

"Wonder what it is…" Lance said, all the men watching as she bounced away

"Aren't all these hypothetical questions kind of pointless?" A somewhat lanky boy wearing a denim jacket from the back of the room questioned

"To a certain degree, yes." Drake replied before shooting his finger up in a halt, "But sometimes you need to be thankful for what you have, and sometimes you need to think about how things are so that you can either preserve them, or change them."

"Here!" Faunel called out bringing forth a rectangular wooden box with fine polished wood and a red cord holding its top to its bottom.

"What is it?" Archer asked watching the woman hand it to Lance

"Well, as your weapon I feel it's my duty to provide a blade." Faunel replied proud of herself as she crossed her arm.

"It's a weapon?" Greg asked as Lance slowly unbound the cord

"Not just any weapon." Faunel replied, the boxes top being lifted, "It's a Hallow. An ancient weapon made to fight demons."

"That sounds pretty bad a…" Archer began before his attention was drawn to the object Lance lifted.

It wasn't very long, the handle only being around two and a half feet. It had a leaf shaped spear-head which looked to be made of stone, yet looked razor sharp. It's body was a fine polished brown wood which looked very sturdy. On the butt of the weapon was a rounded billiard ball sized club with a string of leather tied to it and about three beads, one purple, one gold, one green.

"Woah." Lance said in pure awe

"Well….we're shibushen now, we have a new member to the group, and Lance has a new weapon of bad ssary..." Greg said clapping his hands together, "This is going to be one hell of a phonecall to Shark-Bait."

"So do we have like a week to pack or something?' Archer asked turning to Ox ford, Lance waving his new weapon around

"Three days should be sufficient." Ox Ford replied handing Archer a card, "Go home, explain the situation to whomever necessary, pack, and when you reach the shibushen your room will be ready."

"…three days to explain everything that just happened is going to be tough…" Greg spoke out raising a brow at Ox Ford

"It's part of being a shibushen." Ox Ford nodded

"But hypothetical or not, what does it really matter." Another boy called out. This one had short brown hair, a tad long in the bangs which were combed at a slant, notable was his strong jaw line and his hazel colored eyes. "I mean, whether it happened or not, it doesn't change the fact that I'm still right here in this desk. Sure if Arachne had returned maybe my family would have quit building golems and ran off somewhere where I wouldn't have been able to come to the DWMA, but that doesn't change the fact I'm still here."

"Mister…Daniel." Drake replied after a quick look at his seating chart, "What if it was always your destiny to come to the DWMA?"

"Huh?" The boy responded confused

"Some people say that certain souls are always and will always be drawn to certain other souls." Drake replied raising his hand once again, "Now mainly it's applied to stories about true love. Although romanticized, it follows a good theory. What if certain things are always meant to happen? Say time is a river, and you being here is a leaf on that river that needs to reach the rivers end. Sure a ripple may cause the path to change, but the leaf will always reach its end."

The darker skinned Indian looking boy sitting aside the so-called Daniel poked his head up in interest at the teacher's new speech.

"Now, take that example…and let's say that on the leafs original path it stopped a bug from falling in the river and drowning." Drake continued, "Well now that a ripple has occurred, that bug is dead, and the eggs it was going to lay are all gone. With one simple change, many lives have been lost….So although the hypothetical questions may seem pointless, with them we can backtrack, see what caused that bugs death and do our best to prevent any more bugs from dying the same way."

"But what if…" Ryan suddenly piped up, "What if that bug was on its way to eat another bug. In the original path it would have succeeded and that second bug would be gone forever. And what if all those eggs hatched to do the same. That one ripple may have killed a clutch of bugs, but it also saved the lives of all those other bugs. What is the cost of a 'bugs' life? Why should we try and prevent more of the assassin bugs deaths at the cost of the victim's lives?"

"A very good question. In fact it's those types of questions we try to help you meisters and weapons answer." Drake replied with a small grin, "Let's take the stakes higher. Let's not say it was bugs, let's say it was humans. If we put a price on human souls, then by all means allowing that ripple to take the assassins life was a good thing. But can we do that? Can you put a price on all the potential each and every human soul has? Can you pay for joy, love, content, sadness, and everything else that makes a human human?"

The group slowly exited the stone shack. Lance leading, guiding Faunel through the door and into the bright light she hadn't seen for years.

"I mean, if each weapon ate one human soul they would grow strong enough to take down ten-fold the amount of kishin they already do. But is that a worthy price? Is one human life really not worth a dozen more? Where is the line?"

Archer let out a smile watching Faunel outstretch her arms to feel the warm sun rays.

"That's what we try to answer. If each human life is of infinite value, we aren't trying to save three humans over one. We're trying our best to save every single life."

Faunel fell to her knees, feeling the warm sand and allowing her smile to stretch across her face.

"So in the hypothetical situation, our job isn't to kill the assassin, it's to save the victim."

Ox Ford couldn't help but grin alongside Archer and Greg watching the freed woman cry in glee.

"However…understand me when I say this….There's a difference between a human and a kishin, and it's very important to know the difference….A human, even if misguided or cruel, is still a human. They still have the capacity for change, for love, for hope….But a kishin does not…a kishin is the remnants of rage, envy, pride, and most of all greed…A kishin no longer has any capacity for mercy, for love…for humanity."

Lance aided Faunel to her feet, the woman still smiling with great joy.

"If you allow the assassin to die, that human's blood is on your hands. But if you stop him, you posses the ability to save not only one life, but many."

The fawn wrapped her arms around Lance in a tight hug of bliss.

"And that is what you all must understand. No matter how twisted a human is, it is still a human that can be saved. It is not a kishin yet. Our job is to stop kishin…not humans."

Lance closed his eyes for a moment. He allowed all stress, all frustration, all rage to subside. He had just saved a life, and he truly felt the weight of his transgressions lifted from his shoulders. He felt like a new man.

**Chapter 3- It's a Hopeful Life?**

"…and the Mer is at sixty eight kishin souls already." A pink haired woman said walking down the hall alongside a slender black haired woman

"A Mer? I thought Mer were all in hiding." The black haired woman said with an upward inflection

"Well they're very sensitive to soul wavelengths, so kishin cause them some sickness…" The pink haired woman began as the two began down stairs, "I mean they nearly went extinct back when Asura was free. So it's pretty uncommon to see them roaming now."

"Much less a demon weapon with sixty eight souls!" The slender one replied, "And they've only been here all of four months."

"In fairness they don't operate the way regular students do, they're kind of on their own little mission set."

"Like the spartoi?" The black haired retorted in a bit of shock

"No, not really," The other replied waving her hand about, "More like… really… picky students."

"Ah, think they can just run the school." The black haired one asked as she gave a small wave to a dark skinned man walking by with two smaller comrades, "Kind of like the way Black star acts…"

"Not nearly that bad" The pink one replied with a laugh, "But they certainly do have a bit of an edge on the other students. I swear, I'm not even sure how some of the others got into the school."

"Like my brother?" The raven haired woman asked looking out of the corner of her eye at the other

"No, no, no, Jacqueline…" The pink haired woman quickly stuttered, "Jack's doing just fine, and William has really helped make him strong…but some of the other kids are nothing like when we were students here."

"Kim, in case you didn't notice, our class of students didn't really entail all the best out there." Jacqueline retorted, "Think about it. Aside from the few of us who stuck around to help with special missions, practically no one has become some great kishin hunter."

"You can't honestly believe that." Kim said a bit stunned

"…Kim…it took them years before they even found out you're a witch." Jacqueline replied with half open eyes of discontent, "Aside from stopping the revival of Asura, which yet again was done by that handful, our class never really did anything major….sure we might have had potential, but nothing ever came to really make us achieve it… so here we are, working in Death City and helping when we can."

"Alright, fine, suppose you're right." Kim said giving up, "Who of this class do you think really has some talent."

"Aside from the Lance led unit?" Jacqueline asked to be given a nod, "…maybe Daniel and his weapon Alice….I think that kid Edward has some potential, but he doesn't really resonate all that well with Cindy Lou and it's holding him back…I guess Chris and Taijus….Maybe Ryan and Mary, they have some pretty good resonance…"

"What about the multi weapon…Ian?" Kim interrupted

"Oh he absolutely has some potential…" Jacqueline began, "But his partner Gwen doesn't really use him to the best of his abilities…She's too much of a defensive fighter, and Ian is meant for offense…I think this class's biggest problem is mismatching, they all seem to have the wrong partners…"

**Elsewhere**

"…Mom…I don't think I'm ready…" the young cloaked witch pleaded watching her mother lift a crystal sphere off of its golden mantle

"Dawn….I've trained you well, you are ready…" Luna replied holding the crystal ball in one hand as her second hand reached for a black suitcase

"But what if they're too strong?" The girl asked in a bit of panic as Luna clicked open the lock of the case

"I will distract the majority, all their strongest will be after me, if you run into any, they will be weak…" Luna replied looking at the contents of the case, "besides…you will have the aid of Eric."

"…and I promise, no matter how strong they may be, I will defeat them." A man in the corner of the dark room replied, a metal piercing under his lip glimmering in the dim light

"Dawn, why don't you go shatter some glass to calm your nerves?" Luna said wryly, "All of this unease is pointless."

"Pointless? Pointless?!" The girl interrupted angrily, "This plan is insane! I think my reaction is more than justified!"

"All the yelling just turns into forgotten frequencies in my ear, so why not skip it?" Luna asked handing the suitcase to the man in the corner, "Remember Eric, I will be able to ward your souls for twenty minutes once inside the city. That should be enough to reach the temple, afterwards it's up to you to ensure escape."

"It will be more than sufficient." The man nodded, his pointed hat tilting down slightly, revealing the fabrics shape to resemble a toad.

"Dawn." Luna began as she walked forth, "I understand this is an unsettling job. But what we do is…"

"…to fix what has been broken…I know…" Dawn lowered her head, her hat still covering her face

"Eric, you will lay down your life if it is to save my daughter…understood?" Luna asked resting one of her hands on Dawn's shoulder

"Master Luna, you saved my life, I owe you." Eric nodded, "Besides…if I do die, it only means I will be able to join my brother all the sooner…"

"Ah, yes, little Erik…how old would he have been now?" Luna asked turning to Eric with a striking smile. It looked sympathetic yet malicious at the same time, making it all the more unsettling.

"Had he lived he would have been nine…" Eric replied looking past Luna, his memories filling his mind

"You do this for him." Luna said in a voice as unsettling as her grin, "If things were as they should be, he would be alive."

**DWMA**

"...But in the end we caught the kishin, even if Gwen did end up unintentionally showing off her underwear to half the village." Ian laughed walking alongside Ryan and two other shibushen, one being the Indian boy and the other being the hazel eyed boy.

"Well at least you caught the kishin, it would have been ten times worse had it gotten away." Ryan said trying to hold back a chuckle

"That's true." Ian nodded, "So Daniel, how's the room situation going?"

"Ugh, still terrible." Daniel replied with a groan, "My roommate, Derrick, is still as big a pain as ever."

"It could be worse, I heard Darryl is a nightmare to room with." Taijus said trying to comfort his friend

"Or even worse, you could end up with one of the specials." Ryan added, followed by Ian joining in a ridiculous 'Ooo' with a waving of their fingers

"The specials?" Taijus asked

"You know, that group of obnoxious former freelancers." Ian replied, "Archer, Greg, Shark-Bait, Stanley, Faun, and Lance."

"What's so bad about them?" Daniel added, "I rarely ever even hear anything about them."

"Exactly." Ryan replied, "They pretty much get to do whatever they want."

"They get to choose any mission they want." Ian added counting on his fingers, "They got to choose their rooms. They aren't actually required to attend any classes. They're pretty much here to walk around like they own the place."

"I swear Death accepted them just so they could say freelancers aren't doing a better job than we are." Ryan added

"What do you mean? We do a great job." Daniel argued

"WE do, yes." Ian replied

"But the shibushen as a whole?" Ryan tilted his head, "Not so much."

"What makes you say that?" Taijus questioned

"If you look at how many students can perform a successful soul resonation, how many weapons are turning into death scythes, and overall how many kishin we take down…" Ryan explained, "Compare that with the last few generations, and the numbers are going down, while injuries are going up."

"As much as it sucks, the Shibushen are getting sloppy." Ian spoke out, "Even places like the Queen Anne's Academy are starting to get better results. Hell, even one of our teachers came from there. Drake, he was trained there with his partner in crime, some guy named Perseus."

"What ever happened to him" Daniel asked, curious

"Well, unlike Drake, Perseus wasn't exactly impressed with the DWMA, so he stayed to teach at the Queen Anne's." Ian answered, "Like I said, the motivation of this Academy just isn't what it used to be. Blame what you will…."

"Personally I blame content." A voice interrupted, the boys all turning around to see the man himself, Lance, walking forth alongside Faunel.

"Content?" Ryan repeated

"Content." Lance replied shining an apple on his shirt, "For the past fifteen years or so the Academy never really faced any major threats, and the kishin it has faced have all been handled relatively the same way. So no one here has ever really had a reason to thrive."

"So people are getting weak without being challenged?" Taijus asked watching Lance bite into the apple, Faunel following by biting into an apple of her own.

"Then how did we get people like Brian Blakes? The youngest Death Scythe?" Daniel added

"He's a special case." Lance replied, "He had a personal drive, kind of like Justin Law. They both had some personal reason for wanting to really thrive, and as such they did. But that's different than the typical student. The typical student just wants it all handed to them, they don't really want a challenge, and they would never challenge themselves."

"So if you disapprove of the Shibushen so much, why did you join?" Ryan huffed

"A few reasons." Lance replied taking another large bite from the apple, "First of all…I hate working nine to five, bores me…second, I want to see justice given to the kishin, and what better way than helping the DWMA…and lastly…my goal is to encourage students who really want to make sure the job is done right and really want to make something of themselves…not to encourage mediocrity."

"Well aren't you an inspiration to the kids." Daniel snapped to which lance gave a shrug

"Despite the way he acts, Lance actually just wants to help you kids do something great." Faunel piped up in her soft voice, her half eaten apple nestled between her hooves, "He prefers to make you kids try to disprove him, he thinks kids are all about rebellion, so encouraging would never work."

"…Thank you Faunel…" Lance sighed looking down

"What? Did that ruin the tough guy thing?" Faunel asked looking at Lance in his little shadow

"Do you really think the best way to get results is to make someone want to disprove you?" Ryan asked

"I prefer it as proving themselves, but close enough." Lance replied looking back at Faunel

"In other words, he's actually a big ole teddy be…." Faunel began before a large crowd of students began running past the group

"Fire?" Daniel asked as the students ran by

"A witch walked straight through Death City and to the front of the academy!" One of the passing students yelled out to the group as he ran

"What?!" The group all yelled out in unison before taking after the crowd and charging forth.

**The Front of the DWMA**

The heels of the solitary figure quietly yet consistently tapped the stone stairs as she slowly walked their height. Her pale skin seemed foreign to the sunny environment and her dismal appearance seemed to drain the life from the sky itself.

Her long black cloak was wide open now, pinned together betwixt her collarbone, flapping in the wind like pair of dead wings. The black ragged clothe made the now cape seem ancient, the speckles of sand seeming as though they were from an ancient society that decayed around her.

Her feet were bare, her toenails nearly as pale as the skin around them. The only symbol, was a pentagram branded into her left foots dorsal side. The wound seemed old, yet so horrendous that it still retained pain about it. Her footsteps continued onwards, the eyes of the city still upon her.

"You'll burn for this witch!" A voice amongst the crowd called out, the witch's eyes slowly looking upwards.

Her eyes were not what one would expect from a witch. They were round and large, her lashes quite feminine in nature. Yet they were vapid. Distant. They appeared as though they looked past this universe and stared into the depths of the unknown. This was just as well, as her head itself gave the same sense. Her long wiry blonde hair tailing down her back with volume to it. Her face pale as the moon. The pointed black hat she wore had golden strands about it creating a mane for the lion formed by its clothe. A simple crescent moon symbol on its forehead.

"This is my ticket to being a death scythe!" Another voice yelled out, not deterring the simple steps of the woman.

Her dress had long tendril-like pieces coming from its hips creating the skirt which covered her lower half. It was as black as night with small speckles of white creating an image of stars. One could get lost in the void of her dress, its design reflecting the cosmos rather well.

"Stand aside!" A voice yelled out amongst the crowd

The woman's long bony finger slowly tapped on the crystal ball she held in her hands. Her nails were short and painted black, small symbols painted in red on her thumbs. One symbol was that of the alpha, the second was that of the omega. The beginning and the end.

"It's Death the kid!" One of the crowd said in awe watching the young man walk forth clearing a path

Her lips were not the pale pieces they were before, no, now they had been painted. Although appearing as lipstick, the paint felt as though it was more. It was a sign of battle. A dark crimson, darker than dried blood. It covered the woman's small grin, which hid her true motives all too well.

"Luna!" A deep commanding voice yelled out, a black figure moving through the clearing made

Her grin grew into a smile.

"You have no right to be on this land!" Death called out as he stood in front of the crowd, Luna finally reaching the peak of the stairs.

"You're right." Luna replied in a simple voice, "That isn't the true question…no…the true question is…"

The witch continued, a pattern on her left arm began glowing. It looked like the cracks of shattered glass, spreading across her arm, encircling her fingernails, and reaching a lemniscate on her shoulder. A dark blue line of circles forming across her forehead much like a bindi, ending in its center with an inverted cross.

"What are you going to do about it?"

**Chapter 4- Déjà vu?**

"Father, allow us to take care of this insolent witch." Death the Kid called out running to his father's side

"Yes Shinigami, allow your guard dogs to attack." Luna called out with her grin being accompanied by a tilted glance at her adversaries.

"Shinigami! She's openly mocking us by being present here!" Black Star yelled out clenching his fist at the witch, his anger clear.

"The dogs are barking, aren't you going to sic them on me?" Luna asked, her glowing patterns slowly dimming and re-glowing repeatedly

"Is it really a witch?" Ryan asked moving side to side trying to see past the enormous crowd in front of him, his little entourage being behind the rest of the school

"I can't see anything!" Lance growled jumping up and down trying to see the conflict

"…It's most definitely a witch." Faunel replied standing still behind the others, "I can feel her wavelength from here…it's…overwhelming…"

"What do you mean overwhelming?" Ian asked turning to the woman

"It's powerful….the most powerful wavelength I've ever felt…" Taijus replied, standing just as still as the Fawn, his face stuck in shock and awe.

"But it's just a witch." Daniel retorted in disbelief, gathering around Faunel and Taijus along with the others.

"Yes…but it feels so much more...raw…" Faunel responded

"Like the heat of a fire opposed to the heat of a toaster." Taijus added on

"Is whatever that's up there really that strong?" Ryan asked shocked

"You don't approach a horseman unless you really have confidence in your abilities." Faunel replied nodding her head

"Alright everyone, calm down." Death called out stretching out his large white gloved hands, "There's no need to get worked up."

"A witch just brazenly approached the DWMA! This is the perfect time to get worked up!" Black Star yelled back

"Everyone quiet down!" The ash blonde teacher yelled out coming forth, "Master Shinigami is in charge, and you will obey him."

"Thank you Maka." Death nodded, "Miss Luna, what is it you want? You aren't exactly like the typical witch, in fact you're much calmer than your sisters."

"A lion reserves its energy until needed." Luna replied, her bindi's cross glowing a bit brighter for some reason, "And now I need it….I want Asura!"

The crowd let forth a gasp of astonishment quickly followed by various voices yelling, everyone infuriated.

"Burn her!"

"She wants to revive the kishin!"

"A witch is a witch and should be dealt as such!"

The crowd was in an uproar, Luna simply let her grin spread. Shinigami stared at the witch, she was being honest, but he felt she was up to something. Maka turned worried to her white haired sharp toothed comrade.

"Hey guys, what's going on?" Skylar asked running up to the group

"A witch is making demands to Shinigami." Lance replied still trying to look over the crowd

"Then why are you all back here?! We should be up there!" Skylar yelled out, "Stanley!"

"Right away!" Stanley yelled back running behind Skylar as she attempted to join the crowd, yet suddenly as she ran she struck an invisible wall with great force. She fell back hard onto the floor, a slow wave of light passing through the sky as though guided by a barrier.

"What the hell was that?!" Ryan asked in panic, the crowd oblivious to what had just happened

"Holy fu…" Ian began

"A Barrier!" Faunel interrupted, "The witch has them locked in there!"

"They didn't even notice!" Daniel added, "Master Death himself doesn't even notice!"

"Shinigami, I'm not leaving without Asura." Luna said sternly, her crystal ball slowly rising from her hands, floating through the air, her markings glowing more consistently.

"Luna, I don't want a fight." Death replied

"Then we'll take her!" Black Star yelled

"Quiet!" Death yelled out in a deep reverberating voice, "Witch, this is your last warning, leave now!"

"In case you didn't notice…" Luna began as she lifted her arm, the crystal moving higher in the air along with it before she threw both backwards, the sphere shooting through the air nearly a hundred yards before striking the invisible wall, creating the wave of light, "None of us are going anywhere."

"Damnit, Damnit, Damnit!" Skylar yelled throwing her fist into the field, the crowd inside now noticing and turning to also attempt at breaking the field. Yet they seemed not to notice the girl, they looked past her as though she wasn't there.

"What's wrong with them? Why aren't they looking at us?" Ian asked slowly walking to the barrier and gently resting his hand on it

"They're locked." Faunel replied, "It's a powerful spell…they won't be able to leave that box for a while, and all they can see is a calm empty day."

"How do you know that?" Taijus questioned

"I was imprisoned to make wards, I had to learn a lot about spells." Faunel replied looking downwards.

"So can you break it?" Lance asked turning to his partner

"No normal being can break it, it would take the strength of a god…" Faunel replied, "It's stuck there until the predestined time is up….witches have been known to use it….to…watch their victims starve to death…"

"Did you really think trapping yourself in a box with the shibushen was a good idea?" Death asked, Blake and the white haired man walking up to his side

"I know quite well that I can handle all of you." Luna replied, the orb flying back to her side.

"So you plan to kill us all just to try and get Asura back?" Death asked, "It's a foolish plan."

"I plan to do what I have to." Luna replied as death put forth his hand towards the white haired man

"But why would she lock herself in there with them?" Ryan asked, "It doesn't make any sense!"

"She's a witch! They don't care about sense, they crave destruction!" Skylar yelled back walking to the group, "She wants the chance to kill all of the Shibushen at once to satisfy her stupid lust for chaos!"

"…something's wrong…" Taijus suddenly piped up, "I feel something…"

"Yeah, no sh!t Sherlock! There's a witch about to fight the DWMA!" Lance retorted

"No…not that…another soul's presence…" Taijus replied closing his eyes, allowing his mind to enter a void where he could focus, "….it's different than any soul's wavelength I've felt before…it's…calling to me almost….it's…under the school?"

"That's where Asura is!" Ian yelled out

"Oh f^ckberries!" Lance yelled back, "That witch doesn't want to kill the shibushen! She wants to distract Death long enough for her partner to release Asura!"

"So what's the plan?! We don't have our weapons!" Daniel asked panicking

"We need to get to the catacombs and stop whoever's down there." Lance spoke in a commanding voice, taking control of the situation

"Ian we should still be able to resonate decent enough." Ryan nodded to Ian

"And I guess we're going to learn on the fly." Daniel said grabbing Taijus by the shoulder.

"Well either way I have Stanley, and Lance has his spear thingy." Skylar said, "So we should be able to offer some good support."

"Right, so let's go before they get to Asura!" Ryan called out

"This is your final offer." Death said, the white haired man next to him no longer having an arm, rather having a large sickle-like blade, mid transformation

"Then this should be the last time I'll have to reject." Luna replied, her feet slowly lifting from the ground, her body starting to float

"Everyone." Death called out to his shibushen, "Do not interfere…under any circumstances."

"But father…" Kid began

"Soul!" Death roared, the white haired man instantly glowing, morphing into a scythe.

Death didn't waste a moment, he grabbed a hold of the blade and resonated in a heartbeat. The blade gave off a tremendous purple glow as it grew into an enormous crescent shaped blade, an eye in its side glowing a bright crimson.

Death leapt forth, his blade in hand, and swung with intensity. Luna raised her hand and in the moment the orb moved through the sky and blocked the edge of the blade in the barest of moments before striking the witch.

The horseman wasn't done, rather than being dishearten, he flipped the blade in a large arc and swung again. Luna once again moved her hand, and the orb shot downwards blocking the edge.

Death noticed Luna's eyes glance downwards at the blade, he shot forth with his fist drawn and attempted to strike the woman. Luna turned her eyes and moved her head out of the way, the wind rushing past her ear and throwing her hair about.

Luna grinned for a moment. She lifted her leg up high, her toes pointing towards the sky, showing great dexterity at that, before heaving it down onto Death's shoulder and launching him down into the steps below.

"Damn her!" Black Star growled trying to move forth, Maka quickly blocking his path.

"He said not to interfere…" Maka repeated looking down, her hair covering her eyes

Luna didn't waste her energy to grin, she knew Death wasn't finished. Sure enough, from the rubble the master meister shot forth, four small skulls surrounding him firing blue flames to lift him into the air.

Death swung his scythe around like a blender headed for Luna directly above him. She didn't move, nor did she swing her crystal ball around for defense. She braced herself and met the blade.

Everyone allowed their hopes to rise for just a moment before realizing what had happened. Luna stood atop the blades edge, her bare feet holding the sides, the sharpness nowhere near cutting her.

"You've gotten rusty." Luna muttered, her toes still holding back the force of the weapon

"It happens when one isn't allowed to leave the city." Death replied tilting his head.

Suddenly Death pulled the blade away with force and shot for Luna. He pinned her on the shaft of the scythe and flew upwards before striking the invisible roof, crushing her between his weapon and her own barrier.

Luna growled before shooting her finger forth, her orb shooting to her rescue and striking Death in the face. Death launched across the sky before regaining himself, when he did, his mask revealed a large crack under its eye from the strike.

Luna let out a small laugh as the crystal settled into her hand. Her arm pattern's glow continued on its consistent course, she wasn't ready to let up, neither was the horseman.

"How long has it been since you've fought a witch of my caliber?" Luna asked in a calm voice, "Eight hundred years?"

"I wouldn't necessarily say Arachne was of an original's power." Death replied floating opposite Luna, "She was a cowardess traitor to the witches."

Suddenly death shot forth and swung his fist in a great chop striking Luna directly in the face causing her to plummet downwards into the stairs.

"Similar to you." Death called out watching the witch rise from the rubble.

Luna's head tilted downwards as she floated up, a bead of crimson blood lowering from her brow. Her patterns glow changed to that of a dark purple. She no longer gave off the impression of calmness, now she seemed ready for battle.

"My sister has made a nice community for our kind, I do not betray them, I simply operate outside of them." Luna replied rising into the air.

"I'm sure Arachne felt the same way." Death retorted, "I wonder how Lilith must feel about this situation…"

"Don't speak to me about my Mother!" Luna yelled back with fury, "Before the pathetic swine known as humans took over, this land belonged to nature! All my mother wanted was justice!"

"She must be quite proud her race is known for its love of destruction." Death replied

Luna shot through the air like a rocket, her fingers shooting into the chest of Death and driving him through the air until he crashed into the opposite wall. Luna quickly punched Death in the face hard with her opposite hand, her crystal then launched into his face, followed by another punch. As she swung yet again, Death's arm shot up and he grabbed a hold of her wrist before shooting down, crashing her into the ground.

The crowd watched amazed as the two shot back into the air before shooting away from each other yet again, each taking in deep breaths, regaining their energy.

**The Catacombs of the DWMA**

"This map is ancient, how do we even know it's accurate?" Dawn asked running forth, a suitcase in one hand, a crumpled yellow map in the other

"We have to risk it, we don't have the time to question it." Eric retorted as the two ran through a half demolished portion of the catacombs. Statues of men, women, and humans with their skeletons revealed in some parts littered the dim room.

"Wait!" Luna called out throwing her arm forth, halting her comrade

"…What is it?" Eric asked looking around

Dawn didn't say a word, instead she slowly lifted her thin finger to her lips, shushing her partner. The two stood silent for a moment before the distant echo of voices ran past their ears.

"Impossible! It hasn't been that long yet!" Eric growled looking back

"These must have been out of range." Dawn retorted looking back, the feeling of their follower's souls reaching her

"How did they know we were here?!" Eric asked clenching his fist

"I don't know, but it doesn't matter…they're here now…and not far off…" Dawn replied staring back, a specific wavelength catching her attention.

She couldn't describe it, yet she was drawn to it. It was a human's soul wavelength, but it gave off the most comforting feel she could imagine. It was comforting and oddly alluring, the witch couldn't imagine what was causing it. But she would soon have a chance to see, because it along with its comrades weren't far behind.

"Listen to me Dawn." Eric interrupted the witch's train of thought, "You need to get to the temple, I'll hold them off."

"But Eric…" Dawn began

"Just go, we have a mission to complete." Eric stopped her.

**The Entrapped DWMA**

"Is this all you have to offer Shinigami?" Luna asked, her right foot pressing Death's shoulder down, her left knee holding his torso down, her eyes looking into his face.

"No, I'm conserving my energy so I can destroy this trap after I kill you." Death replied without so much as a flinch

"Then I guess I'll just have to step it up and make you show me all of your power." Luna said with a gnarled grin before quickly shooting her head down and biting hard on death's neck

"Get away!" Death yelled in anguish quickly chopping Luna hard across the sternum

The witch flew into the air with a spin, death then shot up with a wide swing up his blade. In what seemed like a blink, Luna's cape was pierced by the blade, but she had escaped it. The witch stood atop the blade, her cape gone and her hand slowly reaching for her hat.

"I know you're capable of much more than this." Luna said, Death still holding the scythe level, "You're a horseman for a damn reason…show me your damn power!"

Luna shot forth kneeing Shinigami in the face, yet she wasn't done. As he flew back, her crystal shot into his chest and pushed him backwards into the stairs. But it didn't stop. The crystal dragged Death up the stone stairs, ripping through them as though they were chalk. The crystal then pulled upwards dragging Death back into the air, as it did so a beast suddenly formed out of it.

Protruding from the sphere was a large crystalline crescent. Out of the crescent appeared the muscular torso of a lycanthrope, yet it was no lycan. It had the head of a lion, a large mane spreading about. It had a pentagram branded into its left pectoral. And behind its clawed paw-like fingers was a tuft of dark fur leading up to its elbow.

The beast grabbed a hold of Deaths arms before sinking its teeth into the opposite side of his neck. Yet death didn't scream in pain. He seemed to growl, yet he did not yell or cry.

"Do it shinigami!" Luna yelled floating in front of the apprehended reaper. Her cloak gone, her hat gone, yet her markings glowing like a raging inferno. Her power was nearly palpable in the air, the shibushen in awe at the strength.

"The more power I unleash, the more power you'll unleash." Death said looking at Luna, his mask's eyes tilting as though enraged, "Leading to unnecessary destruction."

"Oh come now, we're contained." Luna whispered in a sensual voice raising her fingers gently to the chin of death's mask, "Your precious city will be perfectly safe, and your shibushen can protect themselves….Let the power go, stand tall like you did years ago."

Death remained quiet for a moment, his cloak's edges starting to turn ragged and flowing. His mask turned from its simplicity into a much more sinister looking piece. Even the large white hands of the reaper became much more slender and angular.

"Release me!" Death roared with intensity

Death threw his arms back and tossed the beast off of him. It spun backwards in the air as Death threw his hand forth and grabbed a hold of Luna's neck.

"There we go." Luna smiled as she grasped her neck, the thin jagged fingers wrapping tighter, "Show them all your true colors."

"I am not like you." Death said pulling the woman close, her eyes meeting the void where his should be, "You claim to be different than your sisters, but you simply trade in their form of destruction for another.'

"And you claim to be a guardian of order." Luna managed to squeeze out of her compressed throat, "But you're just as bloodthirsty as your brothers."

Suddenly Luna's beast latched onto the back of death, slicing its claws and teeth into the reaper. Luna quickly pulled herself back before raising her left hand. The glowing markings on her arm began seeping a fog like aura which grew into claws on her fingers.

"The lion bares its claws." Luna smiled before thrusting her new claws into Death's stomach, her beast still attacking his back.

Death let out a battle cry before unleashing a field of aura pushing the beast and Luna back. Luna didn't even have the moment to feel pain before death grabbed a hold of her ankle and flung her into her beast.

The two flew through the air for a moment before Death swung around his Scythe and flew after the two. And with a great arced swing death attacked the duo. Quicker than a flash, the blade landed. But not how Death wished.

Luna laughed, her claws barely catching the blade in time to prevent her demise, the tip of the resonated weapon reaching half an inch from her sternum, piercing the cloth over her chest.

**Catacombs**

"They're this way!" Faunel Called out leading the group through the dark catacombs, "I can feel their wavelength getting closer!"

"So what exactly is the plan if they're just as powerful as that witch out there?" Taijus asked trying to keep up with the group.

"Our only mission is to stop them from reviving Asura." Lance replied, "Even if that means distracting them long enough for the others to be released up there."

As he finished this statement Faunel stopped abruptly, throwing her arms out to stop the others.

"What is it?" Ian asked as a small unidentified object bounced down the dark hallway.

Everyone looked in wonder at the small black orb with a tendril like extension wiggling it down the floor. On its front there was no symbol of eyes, just a white fang filled smile.

"Wait!" Ryan said in shock upon realization, yet he was too late, the critter exploded in a fiery inferno.

The room filled with a cloud of dust along with the crackling of the rubble. Ryan crawled to his hands and knees dazed, he could feel speckles of water falling on his head.

"These are the shibushen that managed to evade Luna?' A voice asked as its owner walked into the hazy room, "I expected someone more impressive…not just kids…."

As the man spoke, a pile of rocks suddenly shifted and Lance pulled himself forth from the debris. The man coughed a dirt filled cough as he lifted Faunel out from the rubble underneath him.

"Ah, so one of the spartoi did escape" The voice called out, his footsteps making small splashes in the small puddles of water forming on the ground, a steady stream of drops falling from the roof.

"You impudent f^ck!" Skylar yelled out as she moved forth through the settling rubble, the back of her jacket half shredded, singed by the blast.

"Another?" The man asked before quickly ducking, an enormous piece of metal swinging through the air just above his head.

The dust finally managed to dissipate enough for the two combatants to come into view of each other. Skylar stood, her jacket steaming from the speckles of water dropping on it. Over her shoulder she hoisted an enormous blade, far beyond practicality. It was nearly six feet long, two of those feet being its long slender wooden handle. It was thick, and not smooth on its bladed side, rather it had several large teeth. It was the mutant offspring of a saw and a surfboard.

On the walls of the room the other Shibushen staggered to their feet, the confusion caused by the explosion settling.

"So you're the one trying to revive Asura?" Skylar asked examining her enemy.

He was an odd looking adversary, yet his hat clearly showed that he was indeed a witch. He had mid length black hair combed at a slant, covering his left eye. His hat bore a toad's face on it. He wore a long black jacket which covered most of his body, his left hand bearing a metal claw over its index and middle finger. Yet his eyes were most captivating of all. He had black surrounding them both, and his pupils were an insipid milky white.

"I think you mean, about to revive Asura." Eric, the toad witch replied, "Because you won't be standing in my way.

"No, this isn't the one" Taijus called out finally reaching his feet, "His wavelength isn't the same as the one I felt earlier. There must be another!"

"Maybe there is, maybe there isn't." Eric replied raising his taloned hand, "You won't be finding out."

"That's what you think." Lance called out, "Everyone move onward. Skylar and I will handle this goon."

"Just try and move past me!" Eric yelled before Skylar swung her enormous weapon blade forth, the witch barely yet expertly blocking its teeth with the metal talon on his hand.

"Go!" Skylar yelled out, Taijus grabbing Daniel by the shoulder and quickly moving forth followed by Ryan and Ian.

"I nearly took all of you out with one explosion, do you really think I'll have any problem taking you down?" Eric asked throwing the blade back

"You won't just have a problem, you'll be lucky if your death is quick." Skylar replied with a large smirk, "Because now not only am I ready…I'm pissed."

**Entrapped DWMA**

Death pulled Luna's arm back as though he would break it. He quickly shot forth his fist to strike the witch, yet her hand was quicker and blocked the attack. Her leg then shot up into Death's face, causing him to stagger back in the air.

"You're beginning to bore me." Luna called out floating in the air, her beast floating behind her

"Then perhaps I should end this once and for all." Death replied throwing his arm out, the scythe he held expanding its shaft and its crescent blade.

Luna smiled licking her lips looking at the weapon. The cracks covering Death's mask began to give off a flow as a field of light encompassed him. Death then shot forth with an enormous swing.

The witch couldn't even react by the time the blade would have pierced her, but to her luck, her beast moved in the path of the blade just in time. Luna looked with shock at the blade resting inches from her face, her beast nearly sliced in two. The creature let out no noise before it shattered, her crystal ball falling into pieces.

"Is this what you wanted?!" Death asked swinging the blade again, Luna barely twisting her body to avoid the attack. "If you really think you can handle me, then show me what power you're hiding!"

Death swung his blade around in a barrage of swipes and slices. Luna twisted around and slithered through the air barely avoiding the attacks by the slimmest of margins. Death didn't let up on his assault and continued the aerial onslaught which would have surely turned anyone into mincemeat.

Suddenly through the onslaught of attacks, Luna shot forth like a missile directly into Death's chest. She dug her aura claws into him with force until the glowing nail reached the opposite side of death, coming out of his back.

The DWMA gasped in astonishment as Luna drove her hand forth, her entire palm reaching the air through Death. No blood covered her hand, rather a few grains of sand falling from her claws.

"How much of you isn't dust?" Luna asked a bit taken aback pulling her hand back, Death looking down at his wound, "Makes me wonder how on earth you managed to have a child."

"I gave the last drop of my blood to have my child." Death replied feeling Luna's claw slowly reach the bottom of his neck, "And I don't regret it. Even if you manage to kill me here, he will carry on my work of protecting humanity."

"You gave him the last drop of your blood…" Luna repeated looking downwards, "…I understand what it's like to sacrifice for a child…"

"You had a child?" Death asked a bit shocked

"…just like you…" Luna replied looking back into Death's eyes, "I gave up the power that practically made me a god for my child….and I don't regret it…"

**Catacombs**

"We're getting close, I can feel the wavelength a lot more than before!" Taijus told his comrades as they ran through the darkness.

They ran as fast as they could, following the souls wavelength. They knew they could catch up, and sure enough, within minutes they found themselves in a vastly enormous room held up by dozens of columns. Standing in the midst of the columns was a girl.

Her figure and skin completely covered by a black cloak. Her head shadowed by a hat with the face of a lioness. She stood still feet from a large set of red doors, a suitcase dangling from her hand.

"The Kishin himself is behind those doors." The witch called out as her four followers stopped several feet behind her.

"Too bad you'll never get the chance to free him!" Daniel yelled out

Taijus looked at the woman confused. Although the others saw a cloaked witch standing before them, he could feel her wavelength. It was clearly not that of a humans, but there was more to it. Much like seeing a flower one had never seen, there was an alien nature to it, yet it was spectacular.

"It took you forty eight seconds." The witch, Dawn, called out lifting her suitcase up, "I've stood still for forty eight seconds waiting for you. In that time I could have opened those doors and at least gotten a good start on reviving Asura."

"Then why didn't you?" Taijus asked

"What the hell do you mean why didn't she?!" Daniel yelled back, "She's a witch! She wants chaos! What good would releasing him be if it was that easy?"

"You're wrong." Dawn replied setting the suitcase down on the ground

"Why are we talking?!" Ian asked throwing his fist forth, "We should be stopping her!"

"Calm down!" Taijus said holding his arms out, pushing everyone back, "She had a perfect opportunity to release the kishin…but she didn't…maybe she knows she shouldn't…"

Dawn turned around to see the speaker. Although her face was well hidden by her hat, she could clearly see Taijus. Just as he felt feeling her soul wavelength, she felt feeling his. He didn't seem like a regular human, he seemed different. But at the same time it finally made her realize what her mother had been saying. The feeling the witch got from Taijus' wavelength felt much different than the others. It felt as though everything else was distorted, the only one being right belonging to that boy.

"…actually…" Dawn replied looking down saddened, "In a way you're right…I felt it was insane…to release the kishin would scar the world in horrendous ways...but now I realize how scarred the world already is…"

"What?" Taijus asked with legitimate concern

"This world is wrong." Dawn replied, "And the only way to correct it is to free Asura…I see that now…"

"She's insane!" Ryan called out

"No…I was blind" Dawn retorted, "But now I see."

"Ian transform!" Ryan called out, his friend wasting no time in leaping into the air, glowing before transforming into a sword for his new meister.

The instant Ryan grabbed a hold of the blade his wavelength changed drastically. Dawn could clearly feel just a bit more of what she had felt from Taijus. She knew that her opponent was stronger than even he realized.

"Taijus the time for talking is over." Daniel called out

"But…" Taijus pleaded looking at the witch

"Taijus! Transform!" Daniel bellowed

**Entrapped DWMA**

"Then why are you doing this Luna." Death asked, the two still locked in the air, blades at each other's throats, "You have a daughter, you created a new life. That's the opposite of what witches do. Why would you do something like that then attack the shibushen?"

"I do this for my daughter." Luna replied, her large round eyes looking into death, "I know not everyone can feel it, but we are indeed in a damaged world. There's no telling just how much has changed and how much is to change."

"Suppose you are correct." Death began, "Then what good does trying to fix it now solve? The changes have already occurred, wouldn't it be better to try and make due rather than try to correct?"

"That's the flaw of humanity." Luna replied, "Even when they know they have made a mistake, they rather try to manipulate the mistake to their liking rather than correct what has been done."

"One must consider the difference." Death nodded, "If correcting a mistake may cause damage, why should we aim for it when trying to work with the mistake is much more beneficial."

"That's the difference between getting a job done and getting a job done right." Luna retorted, "Man is so bent on justifying why he can do what he wants that all true sense of right and wrong is gone. The idea of something being necessary is now subjective to you humans. If any person dares to claim something specific is wrong, they are berated. And the last one to ever suggest that all humans be nice to each other for a change was nailed to a tree."

"Flaws are what make life worth living." Death rejoined, "What does one have life for if not to grow? To learn, to better themselves, to love. It's the potential that gives humans their great value. Their ability to learn the right from the wrong."

"It's their ability to justify that makes that meaningless." Luna rebuked, "As long as you have moderately decent reasoning, you can get away with anything."

"They have flaws, as do we all." Death answered back.

"My mother was punished for standing in what she believed." Luna said angrily, "People say it was her flaw."

"Her flaw wasn't standing for something." Death shook his head, "It was pride…although your species may claim she did what she did for good reasons, the reality of it is that she was too proud. And it was her pride that you and your sisters were born from."

"So why is it humans get away with all they want, yet my mother was punished?" Luna asked

"Your mother knew what she was doing entirely." Death responded, "Human's may do wrong, but they have good intentions. They may do wrong, but it's out of fear. No matter how much wrong they do however, they grow from it. They learn from their mistakes. Your mother knew what she was doing entirely…when humans do that they begin to turn into kishin. Lust for power, love of oneself, and greed do horrible things to the soul."

**Catacombs**

Skylar swung her blade around, Eric moved his hand forth blocking it with his claw once again. Skylar heaved the blade in a wide overhead arc. Eric once again dodge it, yet this time Skylar threw herself over her blade and kicked the witch in the shoulder, knocking him back.

Skylar leapt through the air and landed atop Eric. She pinned him down with her knees as she brought forth her enormous blade and held its teeth to his neck.

"I must admit I underestimated you." Eric said looking up at the girl, his hat falling off and his hair sliding back from his eye revealing a small pentagram in his left pupil.

"Yeah, people tend to." Skylar replied, "And thanks to your soul, I'll be able to make Stanley here into a death's scythe."

'I said I underestimated you…not that you won…" Eric replied with a smile before an invisible force threw Skylar off of him and flung the girl into the air.

Lance looked with shock as Eric rose to his feet, the pentagram in his eye glowing a deep pink. But Lance couldn't do anything yet, he was still too preoccupied with bandaging Faunel's arm which had been badly singed in the blast. He had tried to shield her, but he was a tad too late. And now he had to watch his friend fight without his aid against a witch.

"That was a neat parlor trick, but it won't be enough." Skylar called out landing with one of her legs stretched out, her enormous blade resting on her shoulders.

"Didn't expect it to be." Eric responded brushing the hair from his face, "Just needed the moment to collect myself."

As he said this he quickly shot his hand up into the air. As he did the ground around Skylar began to bubble like melting rubber. She looked at it confused before some of the bubbles grew small grinning mouths of sharp teeth.

"Stanley, they're explosive!" Skylar called out leaping into the air

The tadpole bombs leapt after her, their small tooth filled mouths snapping open and shut. Skylar swung her blade around to try and deflect the explosives. One reached the steel and set itself off, followed by its twins. All six of the tadpoles exploded in air, the girl huddling behind her blade.

"Sadly these haven't had the time to charge like the first one I sent you." Eric called out to the trail of dust clouds in the air, "But they are still rather nasty buggers."

"Stop underestimating me!" Skylar yelled falling through the sky, her blade swinging down with great force and velocity.

Eric couldn't properly react, all he could manage was to shoot his forearm forth to black the blade. Sure enough, the teeth of the weapon sank into his flesh, one of the sharp triangular pieces making it clear through his arm, just between his radius and ulna.

"Faunel are you okay?" Lance asked frantically helping Faunel sit up

"Yeah I'm fine" Faunel groaned looking down at her arm in the makeshift sling crafted of Lance's jacket, "What's happening?"

"Skylar's holding off the witch, but there's another one." Lance quickly replied, "The others are after it, but we need to help Skylar. Do you think you're ready?"

"I'm ready." Faunel nodded her head with a determined look as Lance put his hand forth for her

**Chapter 5- Correcting Mistakes?**

"You always seem to end up in situations like this, don't you?" Luna asked, her claws still drawn at Death's neck

"I'm quite used to them." Death replied, his scythe's tip still drawn at the witches throat

"So then what's your plan oh great shinigami?" The witch asked, "If you strike me with that scythe I'll slice your throat, we'll both die and your students will see your true colors."

"Yes but if I don't attack, you still will." Death retorted, "In the end there's really only two options…either we both die right here, or you back away and we resume the fight."

"Now why should I do that?" Luna asked with a smile

"Because." Death spoke simply, "If you are a true parent, you wouldn't give your life like this…you would do anything if it even meant the slimmest chance you could see your child once again."

"Well then." Luna replied looking down at Death's child in the crowd, his face in frustration and panic, "You should know that any parent worth their flesh would give their life for their child's…"

**Catacombs-Outside Asura's Temple**

"So what's your plan witch?" Ryan asked holding out his blade.

It was a fine piece of weaponry, giving off the impression of great craftsmanship. It had the shape of a katana with the design of a piece of art. Its blade was long and slender, its sharp edge glimmering. Its handle was covered in a unique dark verdant pattern with black underlining it. At the top of its handle was a small rectangular piece of silver to stop its wielders hand from reaching the sharpness. At the handle's base was a silver covering with what appeared to be the symbol Ian wore around his neck.

"Do you really think you can handle both of us?" Daniel asked slowly spinning his weapon.

It was a rather odd looking flail, at least quite different than its kind. It had a metal sphere with spikes protruding, yet on the metal sphere fine engravings were etched in. The chain link connecting the ball to handle was very smooth and looked meticulously crafted to perfection. The very last of the chain was connected to the handle by what appeared to be a small silver tiger's head which bit down on the link. The handle decorated in paisley and at its end stood a rounded piece leading into a point.

"To be honest?" Dawn asked slowly sitting down, crossing her legs into a lotus position, "I probably could not handle both of you by physical means…"

Ryan looked at the witch a bit confused, Daniel merely let out a smug grin.

"But I won't be." Dawn added as she extended her hands out softly, "Understand that every being gives off a soul wavelength, and that soul wavelength is a very nice means by which a skilled person could infiltrate the metafields of one's subconscious….in other words….We won't be fighting here….we'll be fighting on my terms."

As Dawn said this she flipped her wrists and opened her palms with a burst of energy. The eyes on the lioness of her hat began to glow a bright white. Neither of the boys had any time to react, and the witch connected herself to both of them without their realizing.

Within seconds, the room slowly began unraveling as though it was made of thread. The pieces of fabric were pulled into the air revealing a white abyss behind the reality. Neither meister knew what to do or how to react as their worlds latterly unraveled around them.

**Catacombs**

"Now that wasn't very nice!" Eric yelled shooting his other arm forth and grabbing Skylar by the neck, pulling her off of her blade which the witch quickly threw away from his bleeding forearm

"Let go of me!" Skylar yelled thrashing about, the witch's grip only further tightening.

"You damn meisters think you can do whatever the hell you please" Eric said turning around and slamming Skylar into the wall, "You think you're always in the right, so you must have the moral obligation to kill anything you want!"

"What the hell are you talking about?!" Skylar asked trying to push the witch off of her

"He was only a child!" Eric yelled back slamming the girl back into the wall, "None of us wanted anything to do with you! Our sister was forced to work with the damn gorgon!"

"Stanley!" Skylar gasped

"But it doesn't matter right?! As long as you bloodthirsty monsters get your death scythes, the price doesn't matter!" Eric yelled out

Suddenly Stanley transformed back into his human form and tried to tackle Eric. But the witch was too quick. Eric shot his glance to Stanley and with an invisible force slammed him into the opposite wall.

"There goes that plan." Eric said in a malicious voice as he slowly pressed his taloned finger into the naval of the girl, a small droplet of blood following the metal before dripping onto the floor.

"Hey sshole." A voice said suddenly to which Eric turned around only to be struck in the face with a great force sending him skidding across the room.

Eric rose from the ground to look at his attacker. There, aiding Skylar to her feet stood the man. Lance. His spear drawn and his face stern, ready for battle.

"You've won your fight with her, it's over." Lance called out as he passed Skylar to Faunel.

"Will it be over when you have me pressed against the wall?" Eric asked brushing his hair from his face, his arm leaving a long mark of blood across his cheek, "No, it will be over when you have my soul, won't it?"

"Why would I want your soul? I have no use for it." Lance replied shaking his head, Faunel behind him setting the gasping Skylar flat on the ground

"Funny…I have no use for yours either…" Eric replied, "But I'll still rip it straight out of you."

"Let's see you try." Lance retorted throwing his arm back, his hand grasping the base of the weapon, extending its reach.

**Ryan's Mind**

"Where are we?" Ryan asked looking around what appeared to be a small bedroom with two beds.

"How am I supposed to know?" Ian asked turning around

"How'd we get here?" Ryan asked looking at a small bookshelf

"If you don't know, how am I supposed to?" Ian retorted heading for the open door

"Does this place at least look any familiar to you?" Ryan asked following after his friend, not noticing the small window behind him

"Actually that's the weird part…" Ian replied snapping his fingers, "This place looks familiar…I just can't tell where I've seen it before…"

"The floor feels weird too." Ryan added jumping up and down, "It feels flimsy…and it kind of feels like the entire floor is just one piece of wood."

"Huh…it does…" Ian added jumping up to see the floor wobble as such

"Any theories?" Ryan asked heading for a staircase heading down

"None at the moment….but I can't help but feel something's up" Ian replied following his friend, "Damn I know this place is familiar, but I just can't put my finger on it…it's going to bug me…"

Both shibushen once again continued walking, neither of them paying any notice to the large window behind them. The large window with an enormous cornflower blue eye staring in from outside.

**Catacombs**

Lance leapt into the air and came down with a hard swing. Eric shot his talon forth blocking the blade. Lance's onslaught wasn't remotely finished. Lance twirled his weapon around and sliced again and again, over and over. The blade whished through the air, but Eric was quick and blocked nearly every strike, nearly.

Eric pushed his opponent back with a force before looking down to notice a gash on his lower abdomen. Lance grinned at his handy-work, but he was not well received by his opponent. Eric snarled for a moment before shooting forth as though his force pushed him.

Eric shot through the air and brought his fist forth at Lance. Lance blocked it with his forearm only to expose his mid=section. Eric pulled forth his talon only to be blocked by Lance's weapon. Lance quickly spun his weapon around striking Eric in the chin and pushing him back.

Before Lance could spin his blade around and strike once again, Eric shot his head back forth with his eye glowing, throwing Lance backwards. Eric then shot forth in the air and came down with a mighty punch. Lance stood dazed for a moment before another punch struck him across the face. Then another. Starting off slow, Eric picked up his punch's speed until he unleashed a barrage of punches on Lance's face, ending with a mighty uppercut.

The strength of the uppercut brought Lance into the air, but Eric grabbed a hold of his ankle and slammed him back into the now soaked ground. A splash of the water filled air, covering Eric's grinning face.

**Daniel's Mind**

"No, no, no…how the hell did I end up here?!" Daniel practically screamed clinging to his chair, his arms shaking.

Before him all he could manage to see was the two rows of seats and the multiple windows. He had somehow managed to find himself inside of a plane. Unlucky for him, he had quite the fear of flying and was glued to his seat in panic.

"S-sir…where are we?" Daniel stuttered turning to man next to him, "S-sir?"

Daniel slowly reached his hand out to touch the trench coat wearing man, as he did the hat of the passenger fell off revealing his face. It was nothing more than a mannequin. No face, just a blank slab of plastic sitting next to the boy.

"What the h-hell…" Daniel said stunned, still unable to move, "…is going on?"

**Catacombs**

"You really put too much faith in people who don't deserve it." Eric said turning to Faunel sat on her knees next to Skylar, the girl still having trouble breathing.

"You're wrong." Faunel retorted looking up at the witch, "My faith is well placed….he rescued me, saved my life, protected me, found me a home, and has been my best friend…he deserves every last ounce of my trust and belief."

"You're a loyal one, I'll give you that." Eric replied squatting down across Faunel, "But I do believe I sense bestiality. And that's just disgusting."

"You can believe whatever you want." Faunel retorted looking the witch in the eyes, "You're still a monster."

"Let's see which one of us can walk down a human street without others running away." Eric retorted with a wicked grin, "Maybe he has a soft spot for you, but the humans don't. To them you're just another monster. Like it or not we have more in common than you think."

"I have nothing in common with you." Faunel said in her soft voice more forceful than before.

"Oh but you do." Eric replied gently raising his fingers to the Fawn's chin

For just a split second, Faunel's eyes shifted to the side before looking back into Eric's. The witch quickly spun around just in time to raise his hand and catch Lance's spear, its blade aiming for his neck.

"That wasn't very nice." Eric said tightening his grip, "I was in the middle of a conversation!"

With his shout Eric threw Lance back across the room. Lance landed hard but quickly rolled over to his feet regaining himself.

"Faunel…I know we haven't had much practice…but it's time." Lance called out to which Faunel quickly and dutifully nodded her head, "Soul Resonation!"

**Taijus' Mind**

"Ow…" Taijus groaned rubbing the back of his head as he rose from the throne he found himself in.

The boy looked around rather surprised at what he saw. He stood in the midst of a large room filled with random pieces that could best be described as props. Trinkets surrounded his feet as he tried moving forth, each piece looking odd.

"What is this place?" Taijus asked clearing the room to find himself in yet another large room filled with racks of clothes, odd masks and heads atop shelves over the clothes.

The boy examined the hats, masks, and heads to find more and more peculiarities. There were ghouls masks, hideous masks, lion heads, dinosaur heads, all manors of items. He continued onwards to find a door, a simple wooden unpainted door.

He slowly wrapped his hand around the handle and pushed on it.

"Huh?!" A feminine voice said stunned

Taijus found himself on a stage. The stage had been filled with what appeared to be a living room set. The walls were painted a fine blue and covered with fake pictures. There was a set of well made sitting chairs. Hanging from the overhead lights were small toy planes dangling back and forth. And in the midst of the room was a large dollhouse with a woman on her knees beside it stumbling for her hat.

"What is this where am I?" Taijus asked approaching the girl who quickly staggered to her feet

"How did you get here?!" The woman, Dawn the witch, asked backing away from Taijus, "That isn't possible."

"It's you." Taijus said recognizing the witch, "How did we get here?"

"That isn't the question." Dawn replied, her purplish pink lips coming into the light for a moment from her hats overcast shadow, "The question is how did you get here?"

As Dawn said this she accidently bumped into the set's wall which nearly caused her to fall.

"Easy!" Taijus called out with a concerned voice, "I don't want to fight. I just want to know what's going on."

"Somehow you managed to escape my grasp." Dawn replied, both her and Taijus having a momentary flash of the room outside of Asura's temple were Taijus was the only one of his group standing.

"That thing you did…" Taijus said in realization, "It was meant to knock us out?"

"Close." Dawn replied still pinned to wall, "It allowed me to take all of your consciouses into my subconscious where I should have been able to take control and distract you…but somehow you escaped my complete grasp…"

"How did I do that?" Taijus asked stepping forward, his leg passing in front of the dollhouse

"I don't know." Dawn replied shaking her head, "There's only two ways one can do it…either they have far greater astral strength than I do…which doesn't seem to be the case with you…or…their soul is somehow connected to mine…"

**Catacombs**

"What? You two can't resonate." Eric called out looking back and forth between Faunel and Lance

"Interesting thing about soul resonance." Lance called out as his soul wavelength began to increase along with Faunel's, the power of the man multiplying drastically, "Really there are only three things needed to make it work: Two compatible souls and an outlet for the energy."

"But you don't have the strength to use your own body as an outlet for that much power!" Eric called back

"Who says I'm using my body as the outlet?" Lance asked before the shaft of his spear began glowing a bright white and stretching out. Eric looked stunned to see the blade-head also expand, the tip growing longer and sharper, the back edge growing curling tendrils which curled back and wrapped around the edge of the shaft.

"Impossible." Eric said stunned as Lance stomped his feet into a stance and held his new weapon at his side.

"I don't think you understand what that word means." Lance retorted with a smirk

"Will this doesn't change anything!" Eric yelled charging forth and leaping into the air.

Before the Witch reached his target, Lance spun around his new spear and struck Eric in the chin. Then with great dexterity, Lance spun the weapon again and brought Eric to the ground. As the witch struggled to his feet, Lance shot through the air and pushed the witch to the opposite wall, pinning him with the shaft of his weapon.

"Go on…do it…" Eric muttered as speckles of blood began dripping down the side of his mouth, "Kill me with your 'righteous justice'."

"There's no need." Lance retorted loosening his press, "You've already lost."

Eric roared pushing Lance away and lifting his claw to attack. Before he could complete his drawback, Lance shot forth the butt of his spear into the temple of his opponent, knocking the witch out cold before he even hit the ground.

**Dawn's Mind**

"What do you mean?" Taijus asked approaching the witch, every few seconds visions of the dark room appearing in his head

"…I don't know how to explain it." Dawn replied looking down and slowly reaching for her hat, "But I think we're connected somehow."

At that moment Dawn pushed back her hat revealing her face to Taijus. She had long light blonde hair which fell down her back and over the side of her face. Two long locks of hair reaching down her face, parting just above her brow and covering a portion of her brow and a small corner of her eyes.

Her large round eyes were a cornflower blue which practically glimmered in the stage lights. Her skin a pale yet flawless consistency which went surprisingly well with her purplish pink lips.

"You aren't like the other witches." Taijus said reaching the girl, a quick image of the dark room appearing in his head as he removed her hat.

"Why? Because I'm young?" Dawn asked looking away from the Indian

"No." Taijus retorted moving his head to the side to meet her eyes, "Because I can sense so much good in you."

Dawn couldn't help but let a small smile come across her face as she turned back to look at the boy head on. Neither could explain it, yet neither had to, for at that moment they felt a remarkable connection. A feeling as though for just a moment everything was right in the world.

"…I have to do this." Dawn spoke up, the stage disappearing from both of their view, now the dark room once again coming into view, "I have to revive Asura."

"But why? It will cause so much pain…so much madness." Taijus retorted looking back for a moment at his unconscious allies on the ground

"Because, I never realized just how badly this world has fallen into chaos." Dawn replied opening the suitcase to reveal a large syringe aside a glass jar of a grotesque purple substance.

"But we can fix that." Taijus pleaded hearing distant footsteps

"I'm trying to." Dawn replied turning back to Taijus and looking into his eyes, "I need you to trust me."

Taijus stood in silence for a moment, the distant footsteps getting louder.

"I trust you." Taijus nodded

**Entrapped DWMA**

"What's going on?!" One of the shibushen asked as the box began illuminating

"It seems you're out of time." Death said to Luna

"No." Luna replied suddenly lifting her foot and kicking the horseman away, ending the stalemate, "You are."

"What are you talking about?" Death asked as holes began forming in the top of the magic container

"I can feel it, it's happening." Luna replied with a large grin, "He's being revived!"

"What do you…no…no!" Death called out, "You wouldn't!"

"Oh but I would." Luna replied as the ground suddenly started shaking violently, "Welcome back…Asura."

**Chapter 6-Now what?**

"Hello, this is Amanda Sharpe reporting. It's officially been three months since the release of the Kishin, and the world is still on the edge of its seat. Everyone is still wondering just what allowed this to happen, especially since a similar assault was foiled roughly fifteen years ago.

"From found footage and interviews with those who would speak, we have been given a rough idea of just what happened. According to our sources, an unidentified witch approached the school. When the shibushen went to greet the witch, she entrapped all of them along with death himself.

"However according to an anonymous speaker, not every shibushen was in fact trapped. A few of the meisters along with a few weapons had in fact not been entrapped and attempted to stop the attempted revival, for the witch's accomplices were on their way.

"Try as they might, they failed and Asura was revived. As you can see on this home footage, Asura can be seen bursting from the ground and attempting to leave only to be stopped momentarily by death. Death is then blindsided by the witch that had entrapped the shibushen, allowing Asura to escape.

"That was the last known sighting of Asura. Even his madness has drastically lowered in presence according to top researchers. But that begs the question, where did he go? Has he died? Or is he simply bidding his time to regain his power?

"Another of our anonymous speakers also gave us some interesting information. Apparently one of the Shibushen aided in the revival of Asura. A traitor? In what's supposed to be the most secure location on this planet? No official word has been given about the situation other than a brief sentence by Brian Blakes stating:

"We have the situation under control, in fact we did apprehend a member or two of the assault and we will get all information possible"

"Brian Blakes as you may recall holds the record for being the youngest Death Scythe in history, having completed the requirements with the aid of his wife two years sooner than the previous record holder.

"But if you couldn't notice, there's something odd about his statement. 'a member or two'? Hadn't we been informed that there were only two members? And we all saw the witch escape. What is the DWMA hiding? Did they in fact capture the witch? Or was this attack far more calculated than we've been led to believe? This is Amanda Sharpe, continuing after these messages…."

"The people doubt the Shibushen." A man spoke in the darkness, the small desk light before him casting a light upwards, illuminating a large hood over his head with the number 6 imprinted on it, "That's good, it will make it all the easier to turn them on the shibushen."

"Yes sir, and we are more than pleased to say that our ship is nearly complete." Another figure in the darkness replied, "We will be in Azazel's presence by the week's end."

"Excellent." 6 nodded, "What news does our informant have regarding the Shibushen?"

"They are still in panic." The shadowed figure replied, "Most of the death scythes have gathered, the prisoners claim to have told everything they know, but most importantly…War is not pleased."

"The horseman?" 6 asked

"Yes." The figure replied tossing forth a manila folder down onto his desk, "Famine and Pestilence are far too busy with their…ahem…own problems. But War has made it a point to tell Death he's not very happy."

"Has he done anything yet?" 6 inquired.

"He too is occupied with other duties, so he cannot make a personal appearance." The figure answered as his master began flipping through the folder, "However he has sent his right hand."

"That may be problematic." 6 looked up

"The arrogance of War keeps him from realizing what's under his nose. And his right hand shares the same arrogance." The figure replied with a gnarled smile, "We will still have more than enough time to unleash Azazel and if our luck is good, Legion."

"Heheh….Asura's revival couldn't have come at a better time." 6 smiled leaning forward allowing the light to glimmer off of his fair skin, and the cords of his earphones.

**The DWMA-Prison**

"Freaking ridiculous!" Ian said throwing his arms about as he descended the staircase

"You can't blame them, they're just scarred." Ryan replied walking alongside his friend

"Absolutely no casualties, yet they complain." Ian continued, "…God I hate that freaking Amanda…"

"In fairness the original Kishin was just released." Ryan retorted as the two reached the bottom of the stairs.

"Here to see Taijus?" A voice asked from behind the two.

Ryan and Ian both quickly turned around to see a pink haired person standing with one arm crossed over holding their elbow. Whoever it was was surprisingly ambiguous. They had short pink hair and bright pink eyes. They wore a black full body dress with white belts drawn over their shoulder and wrapping their left arm.

"Yeah, just figured it was our turn to check on him." Ryan replied as the guard lifted a ring of keys from one of the belts

"Don't be so harsh on the people." The guard said as he slowly began walking forth through the small hallway of thick metal doors, "After something terrifying happens, it's hard for people to feel safe."

"Is that how you justified them locking you up?" Ian asked bluntly

"Yes, it is…" The guard replied diffidently as he slowly unlocked the thick metal door they had stopped at.

Ryan and Ian slowly walked through the doorway to see the small room. That is, if it could be called a room, for it was barely more than a closet. One of average height could touch both walls at the same time. The concrete bench hardly qualified as a bed. And the 'toilet' might as well have been a bucket with a pipe in it.

"How you holding up?" Ryan asked trying to squeeze into the room along with Ian, their friend laying on his back on the hard bench, his face unshaven and patchy with stubble, his clothes worn and filthy.

"I'm managing." Taijus replied without any movement

"Have they gotten any more info out of you?" Ian asked

"If I had any more to give I'm sure they would have gotten it by now." Taijus replied rubbing his face, his glasses sliding up his forehead, "I told them everything that happened."

"If it was all that happened, why did you try to help the witch escape?" Ian asked insolently

"Ian! Cool it." Ryan snapped

"I don't blame him." Taijus said trying to calm the two down, "If I was in your position I would feel the same way…I really just don't have anything else to say…She convinced me to help her, I fell for it."

"What about her, have they gotten anything else from her?" Ian asked

"Nothing we didn't already know." Taijus replied slowly shifting to sit up, "The only reason they haven't tortured her is because Crona's convinced them all it would be pointless."

"You did?" Ryan asked turning to the guard who stood at the entrance

"…witches would never respond to torture in a beneficial way…" Crona, the guard, replied rubbing their arm.

"How's everyone else?" Taijus asked, "Aside from you two and Daniel, I don't get many visits."

"In fairness betraying the Shibushen can have that affect." Ian spoke

"Lance is convinced you should be stuck in prison for the rest of your life, Faunel has tried to convince him otherwise." Ryan said, "Just like them the school's split. Half think you're a traitor, the other half thinks you were tricked."

"What about Asura?" Taijus asked sitting with his legs crossed under him.

"Nowhere to be found." Ian shook his head

"But Death still hasn't exactly reacted in glee." Ryan added, "He's called in most of the Death scythes, even War is sending one of his top men over to aid in the hunt for the Kishin."

'Wow…" Taijus muttered in thought, "…well…thanks for the visit. This room can get boring."

"No problem, we'll try and come again when we can." Ryan said as he and Ian backed out of the room, the door quickly slamming shut and locking.

"It sounds like they're really going into panic out there." Taijus said to himself

"It was to be expected…" A voice bounced around his head, "But I sense something else in the air…"

"The madness of the kishin?" Taijus asked looking upwards.

"No…something far more…wicked…" The voice replied, "I don't believe the kishin is the biggest problem the DWMA has right now…"

"What else could there be?" Taijus asked

"…I'm not sure…" the voice replied. Its owner, Dawn, leaning against a cold stone wall, her legs crossed into a lotus position as she sat with her eyes closed, pondering.

**Elsewhere-Not much later**

"Oxygen levels stable, we will arrive on the moon's surface within the hour." An electronic voice buzzed through the small speaker

"Are there any reports of us being noticed?" One of the space suited men asked holding down a red button aside the speaker.

"A few, none have been able to confirm what they saw however." The speaker replied, "The horseman have not shown any signs of concern either."

"And what about the madness spike we felt when leaving the sky?" The suited figure asked brushing off the sleeve of his suit and smoothing out the fabric with the number 562 imprinted on it

"Our best theory at the moment is that Asura may be hiding in a mountain, his madness being easier to sense higher in the sky." The speaker replied

"Do you think that may be problematic?" 562 asked

"For the DWMA yes, for us no." The speaker replied, "Our mission is very simple, and in fact benefits from the madness spike being higher in the atmosphere. Our calculations state it should all go according to plan."

"But suppose one madness overwhelms the other…" 562 began, "Perhaps one encompasses the other…"

"Asura may be strong, but he is not anywhere near the strength of…" The speaker began buzzing as it carried on, "…If they do find themselves in combat, I guarantee it will be Asura regretting it…"

"We will cleanse the world." 562 said leaning back with a calm breath, "And when the flood of madness resolves itself, we will stand atop the new planet. We will purge the world of its inhibitions. No longer will progress be held back by the weak. No longer will the burden of will stand in the way. The strong shall stand tall while the weak burn. It will be a clean slate, a better slate, Death will no longer bind us, rather, we will crush death under our heel,

"Now, we have taken the truest path. We have pushed through the binds of humanity. We have broken the path they try to restrain us to. We will destroy the web of lies they constructed to nourish the weak. We will awaken the truest life form. We will awaken the being old as time itself. We will bring him into our reality where we will spread his flames and eliminate the imperfections of the earth. I hope you're ready…Azazel…"

**Two and a half hours later-Earth**

"Amanda Sharpe reporting on this breaking news! There has been a strange sighting on the moon. As of this moment we have not been able to identify exactly what is on the moon's surface, but there is no better word than foreign. High powered telescopes have photographed what appears to be a crashed spacecraft on the moon's surface. The only identifiable piece of the craft was a small red logo which clearly states the name 'Demon'. There appears to be no survivor of the flaming wreckage, yet that isn't the strangest part. From what we can see, it appears the craft was completely landed…which means it didn't crash, it was destroyed….The only sign of any life we've found is what appears to be a shadow cast from a nearby crater, just out of frame…Although it may just be rocks, the shadow appears to be mostly humanoid. That is, aside from two large head protrusions which can best be described as horns…"

"Lord Shinigami…what is it?" Maka asked turning off the small television, the crowd around her staying quiet.

"Do you recognize that craft's name?" Death asked staring through his mirror

"Demon?" Black Star asked

"Mister Blakes, would you enlighten the others as to what that word means?" Death asked keeping his eyes on the mirror

"Demon…" Brian began walking forth, "Originates in Ancient Greek, the word daimon, which actually refers to a spirit, and not an evil entity. Going back just a bit further, daimon most likely came from the Greek verb daiesthai which means to divide."

"That word isn't the name of the spacecraft." Rebecca, Blake's partner, continued, "It's the name of its creators. The organization known as Demon."

"The goal of Demon is simple." Brian added, "They wish to divide the world. They wish to destroy those they see as weak and let madness which they see as strength take over."

"Then why have we never heard of them?" Soul, the white haired man standing beside Maka, called out

"Because until now, they have not been our priority." Rebecca replied, "Until now, only the Death Scythes have needed to know of them. And that's because they were the Red Monastery's main priority."

"War's Red Monastery?" several voices in the crowd asked

"That should give you an idea of just what they're capable of." Brian spoke out, "And now, it appears they've done just what they've aimed for all these years….Because unknown to anyone not a horseman, high ranking death scythe, or equivalent, is that there are prisoners on the moon."

"Prisoners?" Tsubaki asked

"On the moon?" Black Star added

"As of …well…three hours ago…there were only two." Death interrupted still staring into the mirror, "Monsters so horrendous that we couldn't risk keeping them on our planet….monsters held by witches magic and horsemen's blood…in other words…monsters with no hope of escaping on their own…ever…"

"Demon released one?" Maka asked

"It appears so." Death replied, "And I know exactly which one….

You must all understand that before the world got to the point it's at, it was anarchy….There was much violence, death, pain, suffering, agony, and everything in between…It was a very different time and we did things we had to…But you must understand that there are beings even older than us. Creatures that roamed before Death did. Creatures that led to the birth of War. We simply refer to them as the First.

The First included many different beings. Some born before time began, some born in its earliest moments. I still do not know if they had been created by the Creator or if they began when it did. What I am certain of, is that some did not appreciate the creation of others. And there was a great divide, and from the blood of his fallen children, our God created my oldest brother, War.

With the aid of the newest creation, the battle was decided, and those who lost, fell. The fallen were broken by the loss. And when something breaks, it does not always mend well. They were gnarled, twisted, altered. And their leader was the worst of them all. Once the most loyal, now the most hurt. When one loves as great as he had, that love changes. Sweetness turns bitter, the heart pumps black bile when it once pumped blood.

However, three of the fallen were smarter than their comrades. While their allies had focused on spreading hate and evil into the souls of the new creations, three had other tactics. One split his soul into a million shards, turning himself from one to an army. His plan was simple, by breaking his soul he had gained the ability to accept new pieces which he would corrupt, giving him new life, never allowing himself to be fully destroyed. But his arrogance was his weakness, he was far too weak when separated, and far too vulnerable when together, and although he evaded it for millennia, he was captured.

The second was much wiser than his brother. The second focused his strength on wealth, riches, materials. He poured his soul into the hearts of the new creation. It was ingenious. He would never fade as long as any creature felt greed. As long as one did, he would have a new vessel. But he was defeated by an unexpected source. Famine. Famine takes away excess, leaving people with gratitude for whatever they could have. The greed was weakened and soon the fallen had been entrapped by Famine himself.

But last of all was one particularly crafty fallen, Azazel. He was a clever beast and knew how his brothers would fail. He knew that numbers could not overcome. He knew that the creatures had far too great a capacity for humility to fall entirely to greed's grip. But he created the greatest plague mankind had ever seen. He created doubt.

He did not shout his name and expect fear, rather he whispered into the hearts of man that he did not exist. He told man of the foolishness of morality. He convinced woman that birth was unnecessary, a mere punishment for love. He created a web of doubt, of hate, of sin.

He had found the true weakness of mankind. As long as a single man found justification for doing wrong, Azazel would survive. He was feared by all those loyal to their creator, he was the most malicious creature they had seen, yet one did not fear. Death.

Death was the inevitable. All humans could doubt, but death would always have power over them. Death was order, and Azazel was anarchy. Enlisting the help of his brother Conquest, Death was able to do the unthinkable, bind Azazel. Using the unstoppable power of Death and the infinite potential of faith, of courage, and love. War, death, Conquest, and Famine sealed away Azazel. Although his work had spread, he could not further it…but he knew his work was great, he knew it would spread…it was only a matter of time before he could break his prison and return. It was only a matter of time before he could do what his brothers couldn't…and it appears that time has come."

**Chapter 7-The gathering?**

"Where am I?" A voice asked trying to adjust to the darkness surrounding him

"You're back to the world of the living." A markedly deep reverberating yet refined voice replied from the darkness

"Impossible, they…they stripped me of my strength!" The voice yelled out with a violent jerk of his body, loud chains rusting around him

"Yes they did, but I have granted you it back." The deep voice replied, "You've been asleep for a very long time boy."

"This is impossible…" The shackled being muttered trying to shake his long wiry hair from his face

"Impossible you say?" The deep voice asked, its footsteps slowly moving around the shackled being, "Was roaming the earth for some eleven hundred years impossible?"

"That was different!" The shackled being yelled in a burst of rage as he began to thrash about, "I was kept going by my mission! By my desire to watch the entire world in flames! This is a cruel joke! To be imprisoned here for decades upon decades!"

"Ah, there's that wrath I love seeing from you." The deep voice chuckled under its breath, "Always so spiteful, so raw, like a child angry at mommy and daddy for giving him a time out."

"If I were free right now, I would rip your throat out and shove it into your damn eye!" The shackled man yelled before a loud metallic snap filled the air followed by the chains falling to the ground

"Here's your opportunity." The deep voice said in a remarkably unsettling calmness, "Pray try…go on…"

The prisoner rose to his feet and turned, yet he couldn't even lift a finger to his liberator. There was a horrendous aura about the being. It felt as though a nuclear reactor was trying to hide within a lunchbox.

"Although we go about it by vastly different means, you and I want a very similar thing." The calm voice said slowly walking by the prisoner, running a sharp finger across the man's arm, feeling cold silver evidently embedded, "So I'm giving you a choice. Either you can join me on my crusade, or you can refuse….Oh, by no means feel obligated to lean one way, I guarantee you'll die either way. The only question is…who will be your murderer?"

"Is that a threat?" The prisoner asked snarling

"Not at all." The shadowed figure replied, "Merely a piece of advice. In this world you can go out by your own hands, that is, following your path. Or you can go out by someone else's hands, by being a sheep."

"I'm getting mixed signals here." The prisoner said

"Then let me make this very simple." The deep voice replied flicking off a piece of dirt from the prisoners shoulder before grabbing the man and pinning him against a rugged wall with force, "You've been imprisoned on the moon for a thousand years. The iron in this sand should have corroded you and that blasted silver decades ago, but it hasn't. As such I feel you may prove useful. So you can do as I command, and in doing so get revenge on those who did this to you, or you can attempt to fight me and die right here once and for all…What's it going to be?"

**DWMA**

"Get her out here now!" A voice yelled out, several shibushen standing at the iron fence blocking the prison off from the stairway

"We should take them all down!" A voice called out from aside Crona who stood feet from the gate

"This can't possibly be all you have planned!" Taijus yelled out turning to Crona from the ground where he kneed down beside Dawn who was unconscious on the ground, bruises covering her left cheek and neck.

"They'll tire out and leave soon enough." Crona replied in a meek voice slowly pacing back and forth

"One of them snuck in and attacked Dawn!" Taijus yelled back.

"Impossible to sneak in." Crona replied quietly, "Unless you're a high ranking shibushen, you couldn't know who was in which cell…or how to find each cell…or how to unlock them."

"Well clearly someone did, because they attacked her!" Taijus said frustrated as he looked back down at Dawn, a small stream of blood slowly running from the corner of her mouth

"I'm surprised too." Crona replied slowly walking closer, "Someone had to know exactly when I was making my rounds, exactly how long I would take, and exactly what cell she was in."

"What are you implying?" Taijus asked looking up at Crona

"Whoever did this had to be a high ranking shibushen, and high ranking shibushen are specifically trained against doing this." Crona replied looking down at the girl, "Whoever did this…is a traitor."

**Madrid-Spain**

"Damn I know that thing ran by here!" Lance yelled out from the roof of a small building as he lifted his hand to block the sun from his face

"I'm losing its wavelength, we need to hurry up and get back on its trail!" Faunel called out before hopping along the roofs after Lance

Little did either take any notice to the market just below them, where one girl just so happened to be roaming.

She was a normal teenager, by no means one that truly stuck out of the crowd. She had mid length dark blonde hair cut in a sort of bob. She had a slightly muscular body which by no means was excessively muscular, rather she looked remarkably healthy. Even her height was nothing notable, not too tall nor too short.

"I could have sworn someone was on the roof there…" The girl said to herself looking up, her tank top allowing the sun to warm her arms and neck.

Her curiosity was a mere side note as she soon dispatched the thoughts of roaming roof jumpers and continued on to the market before her. For a teenager who looked roughly eighteen, she seemed a bit out of place amongst the market goers. They all seemed as though they were families or servants, none truly looked out of place, which made her all the more mundane.

"Miss Olivia I presume?" A merchant's voice broke through the crowd

"How did you know my name?" The girl asked slowly approaching the stand.

Before her was a simple stand with a large table covered in stones, gems, minerals, and most of all, knives. Odder was the merchant. Whether it was a he or she was difficult to tell through the clothing they wore. A veil covered their mouth and a large habit-like covering over there head. The cloak they wore was quite similar to an abaya.

"Because, people like you and I are special…different than others." The merchant replied lifting their bony hand into the air, a wooden puppet floating underneath it, its strings dangling under unmoved.

"But I can't…" Olivia began

"I know, but I also know what you can do…" The merchant replied dropping their hand and the wooden puppet, "Show me child."

"I don't know what you…" Olivia started

"Show me child." The merchant insisted.

The girl looked around for a moment, no one even batting an eye towards the stand. Olivia slowly put her hand forth, her nails finely painted and her skin smooth. The merchant watched pleased as the girl's metacarpals slowly extended from her skin before falling out and rattling on the table like dice.

"I have just the thing for you." The merchant said guiding Olivia's hand down the table, "This blade will is no ordinary blade."

Olivia looked down at the wavy crimson blade under her hand, her eyes connecting with the faded symbol carved into its handle.

"This blade has great power to it, much like you." The merchant said lifting the girls hand, her fingers involuntarily gripping the weapon, "I think you must take it."

"But wh…" Olivia began before she was forcefully taken down to the ground.

"Ow…" the voice of the one who had hit Olivia groaned, "Sorry about that."

"It's fine…" Olivia replied as her aggressor helped her to her feet

Olivia looked to see the girl standing before her and the enormous blade strapped to her back, Skylar.

**DWMA**

"But what high ranking Shibushen would betray the DWMA?" Taijus asked, "I mean, I can clearly see some people who would want to…but…who would actually?"

"That isn't the only question." Crona spoke softly as he leaned down to the girl and slowly tilted her head to the side revealing a large puncture wound, "What did they do?"

"They injected her!" A voice called out from Crona, yet in a completely different voice

"Injected?" Taijus asked looking at the wound

"They stuck her! Filled her up with a chemical! Vaccinated her you moron!" The voice called out again

"Quiet." Crona said softly before a large black bubble began forming on his back.

Taijus looked up in time to see the bubble pop into a figure. Two thin, yet muscular arms burst forth. The bubble itself shrunk into a very skeletal, yet also muscular, torso. Last of all a head came forth. It looked like a skull missing a bottom jaw, a white x across where its nose should be and two puffy white orbs in place of eyes.

"Don't tell me to be quiet! We're here because of you! And now look!" The creature yelled grabbing a handful of Crona's hair and pulling the guard's head up, "Something snuck right under our noses and did this to our prisoner!"

"But what did they do?" Taijus asked

"I don't know." Crona replied

"Maybe if we gave her some blood she might be able to wake up…" The beast on Crona's back chuckled

"Blood?" Taijus questioned

"Black blood!" the beast called back with a smug tone

"No!" Crona interrupted

"What good would that do?" Taijus asked

'We can't!" Crona replied only to have his mouth covered by the creature

"It will help her pull through!" The beast replied with a chuckle, "It's a blood which does not take well to foreign substances. That is, once it's settled into its owner."

Taijus stood silent as he looked down at the girl. Crona tried to push the beast off of him, yet it held him in a tight headlock.

"Allow me to demonstrate…" The beast began slowly reaching for the wound, "At best it will save her, at worst…well…nothing can happen that isn't inevitable in her state…"

Just before Crona's creature could extend his thin finger to Dawn's wound, the girl's chest suddenly heaved. Everyone looked with shock as a lump slowly made its way up her throat.

"What did you do?!" Taijus asked looking up at the beast

"I didn't even start yet." The beast leaned back in shock

As everyone stared at the girl, the throat lump finally made its way to its peak. Everyone watched in pure awe as a small red tendril slowly pushed through the girls lips. Taijus watched disgusted as another tendril pushed its way through, followed by another.

The tendrils then slowly pushed open the lips to reveal an eyeball inside the girl's mouth. Crona's eyes practically doubled in size in shock as the small beast crawled through the girl's mouth. It was a simple eyeball, yet completely foreign. It had two fused pupils which rolled around. The eye was covered in a knot of tendrils which erupted where nerves should have been.

"What the actual hell?!" Ragnarok, the beast in Crona's blood yelled out as the beast finally managed to pull itself entirely from the witch.

The creature moved its eye around, examining the room, more specifically the two frightened humans. It didn't look particularly aggressive, more so curious of what was around it.

As it slowly moved its tendrils forth in an attempt to walk, Dawn's hand shot forth and grabbed a hold of the beast, entrapping it in her palm.

"Got you…" Dawn groaned as she achingly pushed herself into an upright position

"What the hell just happened?!" Taijus yelled out as Dawn's fist shook about, the creature inside thrashing

"They attacked me…He attacked me…" Dawn replied, "…the Death Scythe...Justin law."

**Northern Alaska**

"It has to be somewhere around here." One of the bundled men said in a shiver

"If our calculations are correct that is." Another replied shoveling snow and ice out of his way, "Who knows. Maybe someone found it before us…or maybe the ice shifted and it's miles away."

"Well for our sake I hope it hasn't."The first retorted striking a match inside of a lantern case, "If it did, we're as good as sacrificed."

"Speaking of which, how do we know we won't end up sacrifices anyway?" The shoveler questioned, "Suppose we find it, how do we know it won't just kill us?"

"We don't." The second replied holding his lantern high, "And they tell us if it does we should give ourselves up willingly…that it's a noble sacrifice of our lives."

"Figures." The shoveler replied shaking his head, "They get to sit at the headquarters giving orders, while we have to be ready to die at any moment."

"However I rather be here than in Law's spot." The second said setting down his lantern and reaching for a shovel.

"Ah, hell yeah." The first said with a nod, "How difficult must tricking Death be?"

"And what if he's found out?" The second asked throwing his shovel into the snow hard, striking something much tougher than the ice and snow

"Oh cr p..." The first said looking down

"It's the amulet alright…" The second groaned squatting down

"I guess this is the moment of truth." The first said shaking his head as he reached for the amulet, "Let's welcome Legion back into the world…"

**DWMA**

"The Death Scythe?!" Taijus asked

"Think about it." Crona replied, "It actually makes sense. In the past fifteen years, more Death Scythes have had untimely deaths than any length of time before. Yet through it all, Justin has remained."

"But that doesn't prove he's a traitor." Taijus retorted

"But the fact he attacked me does." Dawn interrupted. Her fist still shaking about in the air, the creature inside violently struggling

"What did he even do though?" Crona asked looking at the witch

"This." Dawn replied simply lifting her fist up, a tendril poking through her fingers.

"But what is 'this' exactly?" Crona asked

"I'm not entirely sure." Dawn replied, "But this wasn't a rushed attempt, this was a highly calculated plot…Law knew exactly when you would be making your round, he attacked when I was in the midst of meditation, and he incited a riot so even if I did fight the injection, none of us could escape."

"But can't we just tell them the truth?" Taijus asked

"Seeing as the guard is sitting and talking with the 'traitor' and the seductress witch…I don't exactly think they'll be willing to listen." Dawn replied

"So this entire plan was ingenious." Crona said in shock

"And it was all based around what I hold in my hand now." Dawn replied, tendrils waving about from her fist.

"I think that begs the question…" Crona began, "What is it and why did it fail?"

"I can't completely answer either." Dawn replied, "But I have a good idea of both…Whatever this thing is it's much like a parasite. It was embedded into my blood so it could leech off my power, incubate, before growing and overtaking me….A rather fitting representation of law himself…"

The priest-like Justin Law slowly made his way down the hall, the sound of the riot at the prisons gate barely audible in the crowded hall. The students all walked past the man, completely unaware of the cruel machinations filling his head. A smug smile slowly filled his face as his headphones carried on, no music playing, merely static.

"…The creature seems to feed off of madness, and that's how I managed to defeat it." Dawn continued, "My mind is much more powerful than they expected, and I overpowered the beast, forcing it from my body….but only because of a complication…"

Justin Law approached the large hallway window at the end of the walkway. He glanced down at the city, the citizens unaware of the flood approaching. A self-satisfied feeling was all the madman could feel. He knew within days all the weak would perish.

"…When the creature began to grow, it was altered by my soul. All the wickedness they had tried to program into it was practically gone in moments…Change. The ability to change, to adapt, to survive …whoever made this creature somehow forgot the most fundamental element of Nature. Change."

**Chapter 8- The First Seven?**

"_He will destroy the veil that's cast over ALL nations._" - Isaiah 25:7

**DWMA**

"What we're about to do is beyond stupid." Dawn said grasping the small mason jar firmly, the small tentacle covered eye beast inside not thrashing, but looking around curious

"We need to get to Death and warn him." Crona responded shaking his head

"Just make sure you don't lose that creature thing." Taijus added

"Her name is Polaris!" Dawn snapped adjusting her new clothes, a slightly large green sweater, black leggings, and a dark blue skirt.

"You actually named that thing?" Taijus asked a bit unsettled

"Well it was my soul it fed off of, it was my soul that changed it, so I feel responsible." Dawn replied looking at the creature, "Besides it's not like it's hurt anyone."

"It nearly killed you!" Taijus retorted

"Not that I don't like the argument, but we really should be moving." Crona interrupted.

"Right." Dawn and Taijus nodded before Dawn grabbed the boys hand and he transformed into his flail form.

"So we're going to try and fight our way through a school of highly trained weapons and meisters taught to kill me." Dawn asked looking at the arms of meisters trying to burst into the prison

"Well…your kind" Crona replied

"Wonderful." Dawn sighed as the guard slowly made his way to the gate.

The witch gave a quick glance down at the small creature in the jar. It poked its tendrils at the air holes, curious of what they were. Its small eye looked about, such a wonderfully inquisitive beast.

"Three…" Crona began as one of Ragnarok's arms protruded from his back carrying a large sword, "Two…"

Dawn grasped the flail and the jar firmly as she prepared herself. She still wasn't at a hundred percent capacity, the creature taking much of her strength. Taijus provided support for the witch, his soul wavelength reinforcing hers. Crona nervously began to twist the locked gate's key, ready to battle.

"One." A stern voice said from behind the crowd.

Crona and Dawn shot their eyes up to see the monk standing behind the crowd. He had a smug grin across his face and his eyes looked malicious.

"Master Law?' One of the crowd asked

Law's grin widened for a moment as he shot his arm through the air, a large razor sharp blade appearing as he did so. Dawn and Crona watched in horror as the Death Scythe sliced the questioning young meister through the throat.

The members of the crowd turned in horror, blocking the witch and Crona's view. All the two managed to see was a large crescent blade pierce through the back of the child pinned against the gate. After which, the bodies all fell to the floor a bloody mess, several bright blue souls floating about.

"How you managed to survive, I'll never know." Justin said with a lick of his lips as he began walking down the steps in a cold calmness

"You've been lying to us for years!" Crona yelled in a burst of anger

"Much like your gender, I've always had a specific side, people merely do not see it." Justin said reaching the gate, "Madness is the true pureness in this world."

"War purged you! How could you survive with this much madness?!" Crona asked

"Because Death has lied to you." Justin replied leaning close to the gate, his chain slowly raveling back into his cloak sleeve, "he wants you to believe madness is some monstrosity, but the truth is it is the redeemer of this world."

As Justin said this, he slowly pulled on his collar, ripping open the front of his shirt. Dawn looked in shock at a large red cross stitched into his chest. Each stitch looked more painful than the last, the scars still looking fresh.

"As you said, War purged me." Justin said proudly displaying his penance, "All doubt left me, I was left with crystal vision of what is right in this world."

At this moment Justin threw forth his fist and broke the gate. The iron bars shot forth across the room, clanking against the opposite wall.

"Now the question…."Justin began raising his hand which slowly began taking the shape of a crescent blade, "Is which one of you wants to die first?"

Just as Justin began to shoot his blade forth, a snap filled the air.

Dawn who had begun to flinch, looked up to see a rope-like piece of glowing blue aura wrapping around Justin's wrist. Crona looked up the stairs to see a woman standing atop holding a wooden handle slightly longer than a foot with a long aura made whip.

She had long straight blonde hair with a black beanie-like hat on. Her lips were rather large, yet managed to look in place on her face. She wore a simple pink tank top and black leather pants. Most noticeable of all was a crimson red cross hanging from a necklace.

"I'm pretty sure that would count as a confession." The woman said, her whip's grip tightening

"Janice." Justin growled, his upper lip snarling as he slowly turned his head, "What's it like being War's b!tch?"

"You're thinking of Heather." Janice replied in a quick sarcastic tone, "I ride my own bike."

"Think you're clever?!" Justin growled

"No, I know I am." The woman retorted, not a remote symbol of fear or worry in her face, "So are you going to come along? Or will I have to force you?"

"I'll come." Justin said as his hand reformed back into its flesh form

"What on earth?" Dawn asked as Justin willingly walked up the stairs to Janice

"That's Janice." Crona said beginning after the two, "She's War's right hand. Pretty much his Death Scythe."

"She's a demon weapon?' Dawn asked following Crona

"No, she's a human weapon." Crona replied, "Death has only one weapon he uses, so he has no need for demon weapons. But he personally trained Janice, she's the heir to his throne."

"Isaiah 25:8" Justin said with a smile

"What?" Crona questioned before Justin threw his head back, striking Janice in the nose.

Before the woman could recover, before Crona could even react properly, Justin threw himself through the large hallway window. Dawn ran to the window, the Human form Taijus behind her just in time to see Justin turn in the air to land on his feet and run.

"Isaiah 25:8?" Dawn asked turning back to Janice who stood with visible annoyance at her prisoners escape.

"and _He will swallow up Death in victory_." Janice replied looking at the shattered glass of the window

**Elsewhere-Not Much Later**

"Just think for a moment…" A voice bounced around inside of the poor girls head, "It's already begun. Why shouldn't you embrace it?"

"This is wrong…" A girl's scarred voice shook as its owner lifted her hands to see blood drenching them, "What have I done?"

"You liberated them." The voice replied as the girl looked around to see the field of corpses around her, their frail blue souls floating over their lifeless carcasses, "They can no longer feel the pains of life, they get to rest peacefully for the rest of eternity."

"But that isn't my choice to make." The girl replied looking down at her feet, up to the shins of her pant legs blood soaked through in splatters and spills

"Whose is it then?" The voice asked, "Who said that Death alone could decide when people leave this earth? Why should man not be allowed to decide?"

"Because man isn't ready to decide…" The girl replied lifting her hand to her face, leaving four trails of blood as her fingers slowly ran down her cheek.

"That's what death wants you to believe." The voice replied, "He wants you to be content with what you have, to never strive for more…do you know what else does that? Vermin. Vermin merely run to the next piece of nourishment to keep their measly bodies moving. But you…you are a human. You can see the value of the material around you. You have the ability to want. An ability that has been painted as horrendous…yet couldn't be more beautiful."

"Then what do I do next?" The girl asked picking up a wavy crimson blade from the ground beside her

"You do as he did." The voice replied with an air of joy as the girl's eyes turned to meet Skylar's unconscious body beside the decapitated Stanley, "Young Olivia….you create."

**DWMA-Death Room**

"He was right under our damn noses this whole time!" Kid yelled out slamming his fist into a wooden desk before him

"But there's no way we could have known." A woman standing beside Kid pleaded trying to calm him down, she was notably taller than the boy with long straight hair falling from a cowboy-like white hat.

"Liz is right Kid. We couldn't have known." Death replied turning to the small mason jar Dawn held, "My concern is with this creature."

"It's not just a mindless creature!" Dawn snapped as Death tried to poke the jar.

"Remind me again why we're allowing the prisoner to roam free." Liz called out turning to the witch.

"She fought alongside Crona when Justin attacked." Janice replied in a calm yet stern voice, "If she had ill intentions, there wouldn't have been a better time to escape or attack."

"Oh I'm sorry, I didn't realize you had any authority here." Liz snapped back

"What authority I do have, I didn't get from sleeping with the bosses son." Janice retorted, the two locking eyes, electricity practically visible in the air.

"Enough!" Kid called out approaching the witch. "She's in a room with two Deaths, War's right hand, two death scythes, and a guard. It's under control."

"So what do we do about the creature?" Crona asked

"Polaris." Dawn corrected the guard

"Let's just kill the b…" Liz began

"There's no need to kill it." Death interrupted, "It isn't a kishin…it isn't a witch…I can't tell what it is."

"It's a product of nature." Dawn said with a smile as she lifted the creature to her eye level, "A new creature."

"We can't just do nothing about it." Kid said looking with a bit of disgust

"You're right." Dawn replied grasping the lid of the jar, "We can free it."

"What?!" Liz and Kid yelled out in unison almost leaping forth, only to be stopped by Death

Death watched with curiosity as Dawn slowly unraveled the lid of the jar and freed the creature. At first the creature stared at the new exit, unsure of what it was. Dawn smiled a comforting smile which somehow became contagious to Taijus and Crona, both grinning as the creature climbed from its prison and happily made its way up Dawn's arm.

"Harmless." Dawn said setting the jar down, the creature gripping her sweater to hang on as though she was a tree and it was a small marsupial.

"Polaris is just a newborn." Taijus said with a smile at the creature, "It's as harmless as a baby."

"As curious as one too." Dawn smiled as the creature climbed past her shoulder and stuck to the area under her collarbone.

"It seems to like you." Death said with a hint of lightheartedness in his voice, "I think it would be best if you kept it."

"I would also think it best if you moved out of the prison." Crona added

"I agree." Kid nodded

"Welcome to the Shibushen." Death said looking at the witch and her new comrade.

"You ever take one snapshot in your life and pretend you don't know the people in it?" Janice asked leaning over to Crona as she looked at Death happily welcoming the witch and her tentacle monster child, "I'm pretty sure this would qualify as the weirdest."

**Elsewhere-Not Much Later**

"Your first day was successful." The voice reverberated inside of Olivia's head, "You're first creations are often the most important."

"You call this successful?" Olivia asked seated in a dark room, the only source of light being a large spindle in front of her with a corpse set on fire pierced through it

"Tell me what you see child." The voice commanded

"I see an empty room made of bones…" Olivia began lifting her legs and huddling into her throne, "I see the corpse of a mer providing light and warmth….and I see a human soul spared from death only to meet a fate much worse."

"Now…tell me what you will see." The voice said as Olivia's vision began to change.

"I see…gold…" Olivia said as she lowered her legs and rose to examine the new vision, "I see my blood stained clothes replaced with fine white linen, golden jewelry, and a shining room around myself."

"If you stop now, this room will stay as it is." The voice spoke, Olivia's vision turning back to the dark empty room, "But if you continue, you can have all anyone has ever dared to dream of. You will grow in power. You can obtain the power of a god."

"He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied." Olivia murmured under her breath looking up at the standing figure before her in the darkness

"So…shall we continue?" The figure in the darkness asked as it took a step forth, the dim light illuminating her red hair.

Olivia adjusted herself back into her throne, a wicked smile slowly spreading across her face, the crimson blade embedded into the throne made of bones she sat on.

"Yes." Olivia nodded, "Bring me five more."

**Chapter 9-Seven?**

"…With what can only be described as a great increase of Kishin, Clown, and criminal activity. This has led to many non shibushen soul preceptors claiming that there is an increase in what has been described as a wavelength of insanity. More at eleven. Sharpe reporting"

"Even the non perceptive humans are becoming quite aware of the situation." Death said looking around at the mirrors which encircled him, six in total. Standing away from his podium, his death scythes looked sternly at the mirrors.

There were eight standing off the podium watching. Six of them gave off an unsettling aura, as though their souls were particularly more potent than the other humans.

"Shinigami! This whole nonsense is your fault! Why must we clean up your mess?!" A voice yelled out from a yellow bordered mirror

"Although I don't appreciate the boy's tone, Perseus makes a valid point." A feminine voice called out from a white bordered mirror.

"Are you serious?! Whether he could have prevented it or not, it's happened!" A boy's voice called out from a black bordered mirror.

"He's right. Our job is to work together and protect the humans," A woman's voice began from a red bordered mirror, "No matter who messed up, we must stand strong as a team to fix what is broken."

"No surprise that's coming from a black tear…" The man from the yellow mirror snapped

"Ey damn buo, think ya can jest spek trsh all ya bloody wont?" Another voice from the red mirror busted out

"Oswald!" A strict voice called out also from the red mirror, "This is why we minimize meetings. We're all busy, and in case you didn't notice brother, we don't get along well."

"I know, which is precisely how you should know this is urgent." Death replied

"Let's not waste anymore time." The elder voice of Famine came through the black mirror, "May I speak?"

"Of course." Death nodded

"It appears many of us have forgotten some of the most basic pieces of our foundation." Famine began, every mirror's being turning to look at Famine's black bordered mirror, "As you all know, the color that represents Shinigami is a pale green. Many assume it's black because of the darkness of death or what have you, but we all know it's pale green. And I can only assume most of you have forgotten why that is….Has anyone ever asked you what color a mirror is? It sounds ridiculous doesn't it? Mirrors aren't colored, right…? Wrong. Mirrors are actually a very unique shade of pale green. Just like the bindings of Death's horse. The reason is simple yet so often forgotten…The reflection stands for what a being really is. Witches used to enchant mirrors to reflect the soul of whoever it saw, so they could see the true intents of whoever they pleased. It also stands for more. For when Death comes, and it does come for all, it is quiet, calm, and reflects the true being. Death is order. That is why although he may not be the eldest, he is who we look to. Our father appointed him because he has always done what needed to be done. Even when we did not like it, even when he did not like it, he has always followed orders and done what he knows is right. Like it or not, this council isn't about inflating your egos, or trying to keep you under control, or anything along those lines. This council has a simple goal. Humanity. We fight to protect them, and we will eventually ride to deliver them. So for once, stop the mindless arguing and join me…join Death…in a new mission, to stop this growing threat. To slice the snakes head off before it bites us."

"Master Famine and his forces are with you on this crusade." Dzoser, Famine's greatest ally who stood beside him in the mirror, spoke with a small bow of his head.

"Thank you brother." Death said with a small bow of his head

"I see truth in the words spoken." A woman called out from a blue bordered mirror, she had black rimmed glasses, blue eyes with black slits much like a cats, a tight black dress which seemed much like a fine greek wear, and long wavy brown hair pulled back into a braid starting on the back of her head. "I, Veritas, and my forces will also aid."

"Along with I!" A large man in a rainbow bordered mirror called out in a hearty voice, his large stature barely fitting in the mirror, his long wavy blonde hair falling out from underneath a thick silver winged helm, "The strength of Thor, son of Asgard, will be by your side. Along with the finest warriors not yet claimed by Valhalla."

"Aye." A chilling voice began from the yellow brimmed mirror as a leather gloved hand slowly pushed the young man, Perseus, from its axis, "I will not sacrifice the forces of the Queen Anne's Revenge Academy…But I along with Flint, Lock, Ben, and Perseus here will aid you."

"This means much to me Edward." Death said looking at the figure in the mirror

"My only condition be that you stop calling me Edward." The man retorted, "It's Blackbeard."

"This is ridiculous!" The female behind the White bordered mirror called out, "I did not ruin anything! I've kept my end of the deal! When was the last damn vampire attack? Huh?! One hasn't occurred in decades! When was the last time a damn yeti strolled into a town? Do you think it's easy to bargain with them? I've worked hard at keeping my damn end of the bargain! Why should I have to work double time because you screwed up?!"

"Pestil…" Death began

"Save it!" The woman yelled back, her full body coming into view. She looked rather human and typical for a female. She had on a large extravagant white hood which covered her hair and draped down in a flowing motion. She had deep red lips which contrasted with her pale and sickly looking face. Her eyes were brown yet distant, as though she was ill and couldn't think properly, "I have the right to speak, and I will use it!"

Everyone in the room grew quiet as the woman slowly reached her finger forth to the mirror. As she did so, several insects which looked much like locust began piercing through her skin and tapping on the glass. The shibushen standing behind the ring watched in a bit of disgust as a few bugs suddenly began falling from their side of the mirror and hitting the ground. Suddenly the woman's finger went through the mirror, locust surrounding it as though pulling the mirror apart for her to cross. Within moments the woman's entire body had made it through, the locust crawling back underneath her cape and disappearing.

"You've all followed this droning fool for millennia! Always cleaning up after his mistakes, and why?" Pestilence asked turning around addressing the mirrors, "Because he's given you chances? Because he let a murderous pirate 'pay for his wrongdoing'? Because he allowed a black tear to join you?"

As she said this she turned to the red mirror looking directly at the man behind his two accomplishes.

"The simple fact is, we do have a job." Pestilence carried on, "Each of us do! And we've all done our jobs! All except Death…he's made this mess, let's let him clean it up! You don't clean up after a spoiled child, you make it clean, you make it learn its lesson! The only time we should ever meet is if we're considering riding."

"And at this moment, I don't feel we need to ride." Pestilence spoke this turning to Death, her eyes locking into his, "So I don't know why I should be here."

As she finished this, her body dissipated leaving behind nothing but a pile of locust on the ground. Death turned to her mirror to see the woman's figure walking away as she left the room where her mirror had been.

"A simple no would have sufficed." Death said sarcastically as he looked down at the locust, "The theatrics were a bit too much."

"What are you talking about?" The booming voice from the red mirror called out, "Theatrics are the best part!"

Several of the other beings in the mirror shrugged their shoulders in concurrence as the man carried on.

"Now all childish arguments aside." The man began, his large silver gauntlet coming into view, oddly enough holding a guitar, "The Red Monastery's finest will join in the effort to defeat the kishin and whatever he has created in this burst of insanity."

**Elsewhere**

"I just don't fully understand…" Daniel muttered trying to keep quiet in the small circle of shibushen gathered into the small room

"My visions aren't wrong." Dawn replied sitting in a lotus position as part of the circle, "I'm not entirely sure what it is, but it has your friend and someone with an odd soul wavelength."

"I mean, it would explain Skylar's disappearance, but I just don't get what could overpower her and why it would let her live if it could." Lance said confused

"I myself am not entirely sure." Dawn replied, "But it isn't good."

"But why shouldn't we tell Death? He could send the top ranking Death Scythes to take care of it." Ryan pleaded.

"I…I can't answer that at this moment…" Dawn replied, her eyes darting to Daniel and back to the ground, "But if they went, people would die…people who shouldn't…But my vision shows that one of us can save them."

"Then why don't we just get a death scythe to assist us?" Ian asked

"My vision only shows us…I feel any others may jeopardize things." Dawn replied

"But why should we trust you at all?! Not too long ago, you were the one that released Asura!" Daniel called out

"I trust her." Taijus replied staring at Daniel.

"Death trusts her." Faunel added, "My only concern is…what exactly is going to happen?"

"…it's hard to explain…" Dawn began before the creaking of a door filled the air.

Everyone leapt to their feet, their fists drawn, all ready to fight or transform. Then the door slowly opened to reveal its operator. A little girl in a small blue gown. She was short, no taller than three feet. She had extremely long hair which dragged behind her on the ground, silky smooth and glimmering like gold. Her eyes were half open, revealing not only drowsiness but the fused pupils within each of her eyes.

"Mom..." The girl began before her eyes widened upon seeing the group

"I'm sorry young one, we were discussing important matters." Dawn said slowly walking to the girl, "What ails you?"

"I had a nightmare…" The girl replied, as she spoke her sharp triangular teeth showed through along with her pointed tentacle like tongue.

"I'll take care of it." Taijus said resting his hand on Dawn's shoulder, "Finish explaining to the others."

After finishing his sentence, Taijus picked up the girl and began carrying her back through the door, asking her about her nightmare.

"That isn't normal." Ian said with a bit of disgust

"Humans and Witches are nearly identical in cellular makeup." Dawn retorted, "If I so choose to acquaint myself and Polaris with one, that's my decision."

"Not that." Ryan replied, "Polaris…that thing was an eyeball and tentacles not long ago…it shouldn't be a kid…"

"You were once a collection of cells growing inside your mother's abdomen cavity." Dawn replied sitting down, "And then you were a child, I fail to see the problem."

"The problem is it's growing too fast and too humanoid." Daniel said in disgust

"I'm sure that's what your primate ancestors said too." Dawn retorted, 'Now then, back to what we were discussing."

"…that thing freaks me out…" Daniel added, "It's unnatural…"

"Am I unnatural?" Faunel asked commanding Daniel's attention, "I didn't grow as you humans do. I'm not descendant of primates. So am I unnatural?"

"She has a point." Lance nodded, "So Dawn. What's the plan?"

"The way I see it, we should have everything taken care of within twenty four hours." Dawn began

**Twenty hours later**

"I would ask if this is it…" Daniel began, "But the whole castle made of bone thing kind of gets rid of any suspicion."

"Lance, Faunel, Dawn, Taijus, Daniel, Ryan, Ian, Archer, and Greg." Archer said turning his around to examine his group, "Do you really think we can take on whatever made that?"

"I'm sure we can." Dawn replied, "…at least…pretty sure…"

"It's strong." Taijus said looking blankly at the structure, "Whatever's in there is strong…and horribly insane."

"I can feel it too." Faunel replied, "Something much stronger than a kishin is in there."

"We're ready." Dawn said softly as she approached the twin doors, their handles made of human spines.

"I don't like this." Faunel quickly said stopping Dawn, "Something in there is powerful…very…very…powerful….Dawn…what aren't you telling us?"

"I've told you everything…" Dawn began reaching for the spine

"Except the truth." Faunel replied stomping her hoof hand down to stop Dawn's hand from reaching the handle, "What's in there?"

"…three things…none of which I can tell you…" Dawn said looking down

"Then don't say what they are." Faunel replied lowering her head to make eye contact, "But tell us why we're about to risk our lives."

"What's in there is still new to this world." Dawn began, "But it has the potential to be twenty times worse than asura...but something else is in there…something I rather not say…but it can be saved…it's something you would want to save…"

Inside the sinister entrails of the castle of bones before the group laid a heart. The beating heart of the monstrosity. Much like human bones, when a soul is broken it can mend itself, yet it does not always mend exactly as it was. The gnarled lump of flesh beating its sickly red substance through the body of its owner beat to a new rhythm. At one point it belonged to a human, but now it was merely the beginning of a new vessel. Mammon's return had begun, his vessel now at ten percent.

**The First room**

With a tug requiring much more force than thought, Dawn pulled open the doors and led her group into the monstrosity. The walls of the interior were a stark contrast to the bone covered outside. Golden lighting, fine red carpet, a large desk, bag trolley's, everything merely seemed to be resembling of a comforting hotel waiting room.

"A bit stuffy…" Daniel said only to have everyone of his group turn to him, "what? Just being honest…"

"Checking in?" a voice asked suddenly from the counter, everyone slowly turning to see the one working it

"Gwen?!" Ian asked shocked as he looked at the girl.

There standing behind the counter stood what could hardly be described as Ian's former Meister. The girl was not truly a girl anymore, she was damaged beyond repair. Her once smooth skin was replaced with a hard plastic, her joints now screwed together rather than joined. Her body was gone, replaced by a lifeless doll.

Faunel couldn't help but gasp at the sick creation. It insultingly bore resemblance to the human it once was. She, it, had black mid length hair with dark green highlights. Its lifeless eyes were the same shade of green. It had a dark green skirt on along with tall black combat boots. She wore a black bustier with a large opening between her plastic breast revealing a fleshy moist interior to the doll, a beating heart still inside.

"What happened to you?!" Ian said disgusted as he approached the front desk

"A simple test." The creature replied, its mouth molded shut, unable to move, "I am here to comfort those who wish to stay, and what's more comforting than a doll?"

"Is this what you couldn't tell us about?!" Ian yelled turning to Dawn, rage in his eyes, "That my friend was taken?!"

"I didn't know about this." Dawn replied looking at the doll, its heart throbbing in painful view.

"Ian, calm down." Ryan said grabbing a hold of Ian

"How do we turn her back?!" Ian yelled throwing Ryan off

"Turning her back is hopeless." The doll retorted waving her plastic finger, "And even if you did manage to, there's so little left of her original soul that she would be in a living hell."

With the end of its sentence the creature began laughing, cackling, mocking the group. Ian's eyes flared as he approached the doll, grabbed its shoulders and flung it over the counter, pinning it to the ground.

"Who are you and what did you do?!" Ian asked, his hand turning into a blade he held at the doll's heart

"That's a most unwise move." The Gwen Doll spoke, "If you want your friend's soul back, piercing her heart might not go well."

"Who are you?" Lance asked.

The doll suddenly shot its head back, the joint stretching beyond human capability, before its arms followed suit and it began crawling backwards in a horrific walk.

"I'm merely the greeter, your host is waiting for you." The doll replied before flipping over back to its feet, "This is room one of seven, the greeting room, so by all means feel free to sit down and relax, rest up before you kill yourselves."

"If we meet this host of yours, will we get Gwen's soul back?" Taijus asked the doll, its head suddenly spinning around to meet his eyes

"No…you aren't getting her soul back." The doll replied, "The simple fact is I wanted you all here, and you all came like moths to a flame."

"Impossible" Dawn yelled out

"Oh it's true." The doll replied, its head spinning to direct the witch, "You see, I don't like you…granted I don't like shibushen period, but the lot of you are especially grating to me. So I decided to get you all here and kill you at my leisure."

"How do you even know who we are?" Lance asked as the creature sat cross legged on the desk.

"Shh, spoilers." The doll replied raising its finger to its black lips, "The important thing is, you're all going to die. But I won't make it quick, I'll make you all suffer."

As the creature said this, it slowly lowered its hand onto its chest, its fingertips slowly sinking into the flesh cavity.

"Did you know that a sloth's metabolism is so slow it can sometimes starve on a full stomach?" The doll asked, its fingers tapping at the edge of the plastic shell, "That's often how I feel you humans should go. You have such a capacity for madness, yet most just squander it for a measly nine to five office job. Such a waste. Just because you creatures are too damn lazy to do anything of use."

"It's not madness to find joy in life." Archer retorted

"Isn't it?" The doll asked, "Oh but I digress, I've wasted so much time already, and there really is just so much to do and so little time!"

As the doll said this its mouth slowly stretched open into a wide toothy grin. Ian watched with horror as the creature dug its hand into its chest cavity and grabbed a hold of its own heart.

"Oh and Ian…" The doll began, "Gwen has been a great puppet, but the true shame is that you can't hear her screams…oh dear she's been screaming so loud, yet none of them can reach you…"

"What are you doing?!" Ian yelled as the doll ripped its heart out with ferocity. Blood splurted from the lump of flesh in the dolls hand as it laughed. Its cackling laugh filled the air as blood ran down its plastic coated arm. It only lasted seconds, yet it felt like minutes. Torturous minutes.

"Ian, I didn't kn…" Dawn began

"Let's kill this son of a b!tch." Ian replied with a scowl as he began moving forth towards the next set of doors

**Chapter 10-Judgement?**

**Room 2**

"This one is…uhm…interesting…" Daniel said walking into the room.

It was a rather spacious room filled with a deep shag purple carpet. The walls were lit by fine candlelight and in the rooms center was a large heart shaped bed covered with velour.

"Come on, she said seventh room, so let's get there." Ian demanded pushing straight through the room.

"Yeah…" Daniel replied standing back, looking around the room in a bit of awe, the walls seeming to call to him. It gave off a very comforting aura as though it was welcoming him, wanting him to stay.

"So does the fact it said we would all suffer really not bug any of you?" Archer asked as the group pushed open the doors

"She…not it." Ian retorted before the doors slammed shut leaving Daniel locked inside.

"Daniel!" Taijus' voice yelled out from the opposite side of the door, banging hard on the thick piece

"It's alright, I'm fine." Daniel called out, his eyes not even remotely focused on the door, rather, focused on a curtained off room beside the bed, 'Just…just carry on, I'll catch up…"

"What's going on with him?" Lance's voice could be faintly heard before Daniel began forth towards the curtain

Daniel couldn't focus on the voices of his friends as he could only see what was before him. The wallpaper of the room began curling in on itself revealing the decaying mold underneath covering the skeletal pieces.

As Daniel neared the curtain, a woman suddenly walked through. By all means she was an enticing piece of flesh. Her eyes were an emerald green, a thin purple veil covering her mouth, her green succulent lips still quite visible. Yet it wasn't the woman's face which captured the boy.

The woman wore a very tight fitting bedlah which was by no means modest. Her fitted top barely covered much, nearly half of the woman's breast bared, her nipples poking through the thin fabric. Her fitted hip belt enhanced her already prevalent hips, only further framed by two thin straps rising above the belt. And barely qualifying as clothing as it was practically invisible due to its transparency was a pair of harem pants. All of which was well decorated with beads, crystals, coins, and embroidery.

"W=who are you?" Daniel managed to ask as he tried slowly baking away from the woman, only to fall onto the bed which seemed to have moved positions

The woman gave no reply, her darkly outlined eyes making Daniel go blank. His heart rate picked up, the beat nearly a rhythmic song. All logic was abandoned, the boy was struck. The woman slowly crawled over the boy, nothing remotely mattering in his mind except for the alluring piece of flesh over him.

يعرج ديك، أنا ذاهب لتناول الطعام الخاصة بك الروح سخيف"

The strange words bounced around the boys head as the woman lowered herself. Her body lewdly shaking around as her mouth lowered to the boy's neck. At first the boy felt the odd sensation of a warm yet slimy piece on his neck, yet it quickly changed to a sharp pain.

The one jolt of pain was just enough to snap Daniel back into reality, he quickly shoved the woman from him and threw his hand to his neck where a nasty surprise awaited.

Daniel felt with horrific shock as the squirming beast on his neck was revealed not to be a tongue, but a leech. The woman slowly pulled herself from the ground, another leech hanging halfway out of her mouth.

"…I might puke…" Daniel said in a disgusted tone before the woman lunged forth.

The shibushen quickly shot his knees up and flipped the woman over the bed before he sprang to his feet and ripped the leech from his neck.

" يعرج " the woman growled as her veil fell, with it her lips leaving behind a set of sickly black gums and yellow teeth.

"Uhh…yeah definitely going to puke…" Daniel said looking at the woman

Once again the beast lunged for the boy, this time Daniel wasn't so lucky and was taken to the ground. As the beast tried to bite him, he grabbed a hold of her jaw and forced it shit, her teeth trying to mash as her arms tried to claw.

He looked around only to see the room was decayed, the only thing besides decay being the bed and the curtain. Sure enough, it gave him a plan.

Daniel allowed the beast to open its mouth, the moment it did it allowed a leech to spew forth. Daniel snatched the leech out of the air and stuck it into the woman's eye. She fell back in agony for a second giving Daniel the chance to grab the curtain and rip it down.

The beast recovered and shot its head forth. Daniel wrapped it with the curtain and locked his legs down over its arms, the creature totally pinned as the boy suffocated it. It struggled violently, yet Daniel held firm. Soon the struggling ended, and with a grotesque snap, Daniel ensured that it would not strike again.

**Room 3**

"…with him?" Lance asked before turning his head around to see the new room he and his group found themselves in.

"Indoor pool?" Ryan asked looking at the clear water filled pit in the tiled floor.

"So many friends…" A meek voice said from the opposite side of the pool

The group turned their heads to see a young frail boy, around their age perhaps younger, kneeling down before the edge of the pool and swishing his finger about in the water.

"I really do wish I had that many friends…" The boy continued his finger still swirling the water around, "Maybe then someone would have noticed my disappearance."

"He's another one." Dawn said

"Come on, let's just keep moving." Lance added walking forth along the narrow tile path beside the pool

"What?" Ryan asked stopping Ian from following after, "We can't just keep going, maybe the human side of that thing isn't present, but there's still a human soul in there."

"Then we can save it by moving forward." Dawn retorted as she and the rest reached the opposite door behind the boy

"You can't just abandon the kid." Ian called back

"We don't have time to waste on this." Dawn replied turning her back on the two, "They can catch up."

"But…" Taijus began before Lance patted him on the shoulder

"Just like Daniel, they're shibushen, even if something happens, they can handle themselves." Lance said comforting his ally, "Our best bet really is to keep moving forward."

Taijus lowered his head in sadness as he slowly followed after Lance and the rest of the group. Ryan looked onwards disappointed as the large twin doors slowly closed behind the boy.

"It's okay." The boy said turning his head up to Ryan, beyond his glasses his eyes turning into black filled pieces with red slit pupils staring at the boys, "I wouldn't have let you all through anyway."

As the boy said this, the cracks between the tiles of the floor began foaming a sickly white froth. Ryan and Ian looked down before looking back at the boy.

"What are you?" Ryan asked

"Oh, you were partially right." The boy replied, the tiles filling with moss and fungus as they began cracking, "There is still fragments of a human soul in here, but I've long since surpassed humanity."

The floor underneath the boys' feet began undulating as though it was a thin piece separating them from water. Ian wasted no time in grabbing Ryan's hand and transforming into his katana blade form.

"I really do resent that soul of yours." The boy said rising to his feet looking at Ryan, "A grigori…now that could really give me some strength."

"Too bad it gives me life." Ryan replied uneasily trying to balance on the waving floor.

"An easy correction." The boy replied as the floor broke underneath both him and Ryan.

Ryan landed up to his waist in the water which began to murk into a swamp like concoction. The tile was all gone, leaving behind fungus, moss, and algae in its place. Ryan quickly shot his eyes up to no longer see the boy, only more of the swamp.

"So we were tricked." Ryan said turning around trying to spot his opponent

"I wish I was as smart as you." The boy's voice called out reverberating around the room, making it difficult to determine its location, "So quick on the uptake…yes, we want you and your group separated. It's easier to make you suffer that way."

"Who are you monsters?!" Ryan yelled out frustrated

"We are what ails mankind, we are the creatures that fill man's heart with vice." The voice replied, "We have always been here, a plague every human suffers from, and now we are here to cast judgment on you."

Just as the voice finished this it leapt forth from the water behind Ryan. It grabbed a hold of Ryan's arms as it sank its teeth into Ryan's neck. Ryan wasted no time in flipping the beast over his shoulder into the water before him. Yet as Ryan thought he captured the beast, it disappeared into the water.

"The thing is, humans are flawed." Ryan said lowering his back and looking around, "But as flawed as they are, they still…have…goodness."

The boy leapt forth bursting from the water, Ryan threw forth his blade, slicing the beasts arm off directly at the shoulder. The beast growled as it fell back into the water, trying to get away. Ryan didn't allow it. The katana suddenly stretched forth longer, transforming into a scythe which quickly pinned through the side of the beast's abdomen.

"You aren't getting away!" Ryan yelled pulling the boy back forth.

The boy turned around quickly, his body changing shape. Ryan watched with apathy as the boy's body began growing scales and changing shape. Within moments the creature Ryan had captured was no longer a boy, but a beast.

It was tall and serpentine with a long thin snout allowing saw-like teeth to overhang slightly. It had a dark blue set of scales across its back with white scales on its underbelly. Its eyes were pitch black with two small red slits in each socket, twitching about in an aggressive panic. Bursting from the beasts back most disturbing of all was a set of pink fleshy appendages which had a long webbed sheet underneath, a set of wings.

"You cannot defeat me! As long as you humans treat each other as you do, I will live on in the heart of man!" The beast roared, twin tongues showing through its scaled mouth

"And woman." Ryan said sarcastically as the scythes blade wrapped forth around the beast, transforming into a large ring blade, "Don't be sexist."

With a self satisfied grin, Ryan spun the blade around quickly before pulling it away. The beast's upper torso split apart from its bottom, a large spurt of nearly neon blue blood spurting across the swamp waters.

Ryan looked down at the head as it floated near him, its blood mixing with the dark water.

"I envy your life…" The beast muttered before its eyes drifted off, its mind leaving, death embracing it.

"That was the best finishing line you could think of?" Ian asked

"Oh come on, I thought it was good." Ryan replied both he and his weapon partner unaware of the soul of the beast slowly drifting away in the water, disappearing without their notice.

**Room 4**

"…moving forward." Lance said urging Taijus forward as the doors behind him closed

"You're right." A voice called out from the room

Taijus looked up to see the horrendous room before him. It was what appeared to be a typical room, yet all that remained was shredded carpet, destroyed furniture, shattered glass on the ground, and a man squatting down over the rubble.

"It's best you keep walking." The man finished as he looked up at the group, his face covered with a gas mask.

The gas mask had twin apparatuses on it, both letting out a small stream of steam. The eyes of the mask were both pitch black, not allowing any sight into the mask. On the mask's face a skull had been burnt in. The man's chest was bare along with his arms, stitching all across both. He wore a leather jacket clipped at his neck and dangling like a cape.

The group looked at the man with worry before slowly making their way around him, the only two refusing to move being Archer and Greg.

"Archer, Greg, come on!" lance called out just before he passed through the door.

"No point." Archer replied locking eyes with the gas masked man, "They won't let anyone pass unless one of us stays behind."

"Just shut up!" The gas mask wearer yelled rising to his feet and slamming a Molotov cocktail down onto the ground creating a large wall of fire before Lance, "Move!"

"Go!" Greg yelled before leaping back, turning into a bow which Archer grabbed and pulled back to shoot an arrow forth.

The last image the group saw before the doors slammed shut was the Gas mask wearer lifting his forearm and the arrow dissipating upon contact.

"How?" Archer questioned looking at the man to see a sharp metallic chain dangling from his wrist to his elbow.

"I've waited a while for a good fight." The gas mask man called out momentarily lifting his mask to reveal his face, a man's face with a scar across his nose and cheeks, the resemblance to another being uncanny.

"Who are you? You aren't like the others." Archer said slowly lowering his bow, the man resting the gas mask atop his head

"My name is Giriko." The man replied, the sharp metal chain slowly wrapping around his body much like an unnatural serpent, "Over eight hundred years I've been on this planet… I perfected this ability to transfer a soul, to make it better, to surpass humanity."

"Is that how you kept your mind, unlike the others?" Archer asked pulling the bowstring back with an arrow forming on the bow

"I welcomed the change, that's how you keep your mind, when you fight it you only make matters worse for yourself." Giriko replied lowering his mask, "But enough of that, I have one thing to do with you…make you suffer!"

Giriko shot forth through the hot air, the sharp chain running across his body beginning to rotate violently. Archer quickly shot forth an arrow only to have it sliced into nothingness. As Giriko reached where he stood, he quickly rolled out of the way and swung his bow around in an attack.

"You have to do better than that!" Giriko roared hitting the bow back before throwing his fist forth, Archer's head barely dodging, the chain cutting his cheek.

"Then allow me to better myself!" Archer yelled back throwing his legs back in a buck, kicking Giriko in the chin and hitting him back. As Giriko landed and regained his footing, Archer began giving off an enormous wavelength, his bow beginning to glow.

"Soul resonation won't be able to stop me!" Giriko yelled as the bow expanded into a large crescent shape, a large hole above its handle shaped like an eye, the edges having sharp protrusions inward looking much like teeth.

Giriko threw his forearm forth, the chain whirring. Archer blocked the attack with his new bow. Giriko growled for a moment before Archer pulled the string back and shot forth a new arrow.

Time seemed to slow down for a moment as the arrow shot forth. The arrow, now made of a body of purple aura, zoomed through the air, its arrow head being a three pronged piece which bore a resemblance to Death's mask. And within milliseconds, the arrow pierced the gas masks eye, shattering the glass and piercing the flesh underneath.

Archer leapt backwards as Giriko's body staggered back. Yet to the boy's surprise and disgust, the body did not fall.

"I've waited eight hundred years for this!" Giriko yelled sliding off his gas mask, the arrow remaining in his head, "Do you think I'll let some b stard kid take this from me?!"

"What on earth is your proble…?" Archer began before seeing the man's face.

The arrow pierced through the man's eye socket, yet blood did not fall. Rather, oil did. Archer looked with disgust at the eye socket, underneath it being a small rotating gear which allowed the oil to fall.

"What part of you is even human?" Archer asked looking at the man as he released his jacket from his throat

"Humans are frail, shivering, cowering excuses of life!" Giriko yelled back, his heart rate picking up, "We improved! We upgraded! We have more strength, better senses, we are the next step of evolution!"

"Calm down! You're going to have a damn heart attack!" Archer yelled out watching Giriko's eye twitch with anger.

"You have the nerve to tell me to calm down?!" Giriko asked, his chains rotating fast, the blades slicing at the ground and whistling in the air around him, "I'm going to rip the skin from your flesh and make into a new jacket!"

Giriko leapt forth at Archer, yet the boy quickly blocked the man's chains with his bow and flipped the madman over him, into the flames of his creation.

"No!" Archer called out trying to grab the hand of Giriko before he fell into his flames, yet he was too late.

Giriko rose in the flames, the fire bursting from his broken eye, a silver substance oozing from his other eye, his flesh bubbling, the silver of his chains melting. The man laughed a horrendous laugh as he began walking forth from the fire.

"I refuse!" Giriko yelled taking a step forth, "I will never be done here! I will have your head on a pike! I will have the horsemen souls under my feet!"

"He was a human." Archer said looking downwards in repugnance as the man fell to the ground, the flames melting his body off of his bones, "Human souls can become this twisted, this bloodthirsty…maybe we really are flawed…"

"There will always be darkness." Greg replied transforming back into his human form, "That doesn't mean we should ever give up on the light. Even the night sky has the stars. As much evil as there might be, there will always be some good worth fighting for."

**Room 5**

"Dawn…Lance…Taijus…Faunel…" A voice called out in the dark room the instant the doors slammed shut, Lance slowly turned to face the darkness.

"The three of you, go." Dawn said suddenly in an abruptly serious tone

"But…" Taijus began

"Reach the sixth room and wait." Dawn replied looking forth through the darkness, "I don't care what you hear the moment this sentence is over, just keep moving, don't look back, don't think…"

Lance didn't argue nor think, he instinctually grabbed a hold of Faunel and Taijus and ran forth through the darkness directly through the only source of light, the singular open door. And in less than seconds, the door closed and the three were gone leaving only Dawn.

"It was you wasn't it?" Dawn asked as light slowly began glimmering through large stain glass windows along the sides of the room, pews coming into view, "Tezca, Tsar, Djinn, Dengu…you killed them."

"The law of nature is that the strong survive." The voice replied as a set of footsteps slowly approached from behind Dawn

"You're mad." Dawn said, her eyes slowly turning to see the man standing behind her. Justin Law.

"Weren't the greatest innovators called mad?" Justin asked, he looked precariously normal and calm for his wavelengths horrendous feeling, "Had you said the earth revolves around the sun a few millennia ago, you would have been burned at the stake."

"Your pride blinds you." Dawn said looking at the man's bright crimson pupils

"No, it allows me to see." Justin replied with a wide smile, "Your faith restrains you."

"Faith isn't a weakness it's a strength." Dawn retorted, "We need courage, and you find courage in hope."

"No, courage is just a fancy term humans created for the madness they like." Law replied, "That's the truth of human nature, they justify what they want, they are the ultimate manifestations of pride…Well, them and their leader Death…What they like they justify, what they don't they degrade. Lust is such a nasty word, so the French coined the term Love, and suddenly man could partake in sins of the flesh under a new façade…Madness was such a horrible word, so humans created the idea of courage, a good madness, and sure enough man could once again partake in what he hated because it was now okay…Justification…."

"Having reasoning is not justification." Dawn retorted as the figure of law disappeared and reappeared in a flash behind her

"Oh, is that how you justify turning on your kind?" Law asked disappearing again, "Turning on your own mother and falling for a human has reason?"

"I haven't turned my back on my kind." Dawn retorted looking about, Justin suddenly appearing seated atop the back of a pew

"Lilith abandoned her humanity because she knew it was flawed." Law replied, "Yet you've crawled back to the humans, hoping that you can pretend you're one, hoping that by masking the scent of your witch blood with human's you can be accepted."

"I don't wish to be accepted by anyone." Dawn called out as Law dissipated once again

"Except for Taijus, yes?" Law asked, "Oh yes I know that look in your eye whenever you look at him. It's what the humans mask as love, even though we both know the word is just lust in a new mask."

Dawn turned around quickly, her cheeks slightly flustered as she tried to find her opponent.

"You know, you're just as disgusting as them." Law said appearing directly behind the witch, yet disappearing just as suddenly as he appeared, "You had so much potential, you had so much strength, I mean, the daughter of Luna? You saw how much damage the daughters of the Gorgon managed. Just imagine what the Lion's cub could have done…"

Dawn turned to see law sitting in the front Pew staring at the wall.

"Every creature is flawed." Dawn said approaching the pew, "Witches, Humans, all of them. But what we all strive for is more…just…more…We hope for a better tomorrow, we hope for a peaceful and happy life. That's what separates us from kishin, we aren't driven by greed or lust, even though at times we may have problems with the vices, we're driven by hope. You can call love a falsity, but I can tell you that it isn't lust that makes a mother guard her offspring. I can tell you that it isn't lust that makes friends want to spend time together, tell each other stories, and live their lives together….Did you know that when a human does something nice for another human, dopamine, the chemical that makes one feel joy is released? Humans are hardwired to feel joy from goodness, to be happy with being with one another and being good people. So yes, they are flawed, but they are also good creatures."

"You really have left your witch nature behind." Law said rising to his feet, "And for the humans…the creatures which rather look at your breast than your face."

"No species is perfect." Dawn replied slowly lowering herself to the ground and into a lotus position, "And even though they may not always look at my eyes, they do always greet me…something the witches would never do."

Dawn closed her eyes and began to leave into her trance, the soul wavelength of Law being so sporadically insane that it was much like trying to surf on a tidal wave.

"Go on, try to get to my mind." Law said as he began walking, the sound of his crescent blade hitting the ground and dragging behind him, "Let's see how that works for you…and let's see what happens if you do somehow manage to enter my mind."

Law's steps were consistent, his wavelength was equally consistent in its madness. Dawn's nose began to let forth a small stream of blood as she tried to make it past the wave of insanity. Law began to chuckle, a horrendously insane laughter. His blade dragged behind him as he got closer to the girl, closer and closer.

"Times up!" law shouted with a atrocious smile as he began to swing his arm

The instant his arm reached above his head, it stopped, the man was completely frozen in his spot. His smile turned into a twitching snarl as he looked down at the witch, her eyes glowing and staring directly back into his.

"How?!" Law asked in shock as he got a sudden vision of several silver arms extending from the ground and holding him before his vision turned back to the empty room

'I'm not an idiot." Dawn replied, a quick vision of a lioness in her place crossing law's vision, "Trying to enter your mind entirely would be nothing short of suicidal."

"How dare you!" Law yelled, a vision of a guillotine replacing him momentarily in Dawn's view, "Now what's your plan?!"

"Well, I can try to kill you which may ruin the hold I have on you, giving you just the moment you need to kill me." Dawn replied, a momentary vision of Law as a serpent appearing, "So the best plan is to wait."

"Wait?!" law asked his lip twitching in rage

"Yes, wait. We can tell some stories, kick back, relax for a little bit." Dawn replied, Law's vision of her momentarily showing stitches across her body and a screw in her head, "Then when my friends come, they can take care of you."

"You expect me to wait?!" Law yelled, "I am the new era! I cannot be stopped! Telling me to stand here and wait is an insult to all I ever…!"

For a millisecond the hold released, Dawn's arm shooting forward, her fingertips piercing Law's chest. Law's arm did not move, and in a moment he was frozen yet again.

"Your pride will be your downfall." Dawn said, law's blood slowly dribbling down her fingers, staining the end of her sweater's sleeve

"You nearly killed me…" Law said before his face turned into another large maniacal grin accompanied by laughter, "You still think you can kill me…"

"Only a fool thinks he is immortal." Dawn said, her vision of the silver mechanical arms holding Law in place lasting longer

"Only a god knows he is." Law replied with a smile, the room disappearing and transforming into a large cavern filled with red rocks, cracks filling the ground filled with lava

"You can't overpower me." Dawn said with a scowl, behind her grass beginning to burst from the hard rock and move forth along the ground like a swarm of snakes

"No, I can easily." Law replied, the rocks of the cavern rising from the ground like large teeth, holding back the serpentine grass, "The true question is how long do you think you can hold me back…and will it be enough time?"

Dawn looked with horror as Law's lower body began merging, transforming into a head rack of a guillotine. The man was slowly transforming into his weapon form which was know a gnarled mockery of what it used to be. What was once a simple weapon was now heavily engraved with patterns. Upon closer inspection the patterns revealed themselves to be of Law doing various acts. Stabbing. Killing. Fornicating. Stealing.

"I thought War purged you of your transgressions." Dawn said looking at the horrid patterns as her head looked up to see his crescent blade, the once smooth edge now riddled with teeth pointing every which way, a weapon which would make for anything but a clean cut. On its body a sickly image of man with the lower half of a goat being disemboweled by a shadowed figure was carved.

"That's what he wants everyone to believe." Law said, his face darkening in the shadows of his mind, the mechanical silver arms holding his neck struggling to keep him still, "He makes us suffer, he makes us wear our sins on our chest…yes he tortured us, but we were the ones to fight through our wrongdoing…I wear my mistakes with pride, they are what I grew out of."

For a moment the cave shook about. Dawn's fingers slid half an inch into the Man's chest, now turning into wood making it harder to pierce. Law's arm, now simply a chain with the horrid blade moved farther in the air, the swarm of arms recapturing the man.

"Tell me, what made you revive Asura?" Law asked as a thick red substance began filling the floor underfoot, "I know you never wanted to, yet for some reason you did."

"I finally saw what my mother had been talking about." Dawn replied, "I met som…"

Her eyes shot to the ground for a moment before shooting back up, Law's blade having moved nearly half the distance to her.

"Ah, so that's what it is." Law said with a large smile, one of his eyes gleaming through the shadow that covered his face, "Taijus."

With the saying of his name the cavern shook again, the grass receding a few feet to the rocks.

"Ohoho..." Law cackled with a wide tooth filled grin, "You really have feelings for the boy."

Dawn kept her eyes locked on the man, her cheeks reddening slightly and most involuntarily.

"Do you honestly believe any human could ever truly care about a witch?" Law asked, his eyebrows tilting disreputably, "Just as I used you, he wishes to…oh…speaking of which, how did the little monster turn out? I know it failed, but how long did it take before they killed it?"

"I stopped them from killing it." Dawn replied, the cavern shaking yet again

"Oh?" Law asked, his grin looking much like he would lunge for the girls throat, "Now why did you do that?"

"It was an innocent creature, it didn't deserve death for doing nothing but living." Dawn replied, the cavern shaking more, the blade in the air wiggling forth slightly

"And its growth?" Law asked, "We made it to devour its host and grow quickly, has it reached maturity yet?"

"It's a little girl." Dawn replied, her voice growing more irate

"Oh no, you have to be kidding…" law laughed, "You're growing attached to it? It's the product of Demon! We made it to kill and then be killed! We would stomp it underneath our feet if it took one step out of line, yet you decided to keep the biggest failure!"

"Her name is Polaris!" Dawn yelled, the blade shooting forth inches from her neck

"Well let me tell you something…" Law began, "I promise, after I kill you I'll pay Taijus a visit. I'm sure in his last moment's he'll be utterly disgusted to know a witch had the hots for him…oh and once I've skinned him and put him on a spit, I'll pay a visit to that wretched failure. Oh how I'd love to hear what its scream sounds like. But don't worry, its death was good information, never try using a witch as a host for those little buggers….Let me see, how should I…"

Before Justin could finish his sentence a mechanical arm burst through his now wooden chest from the opposite side. He looked down in shock to see the cavern was no longer a cavern but a green meadow. With no clue of what happened he turned to dawn to see that standing in her stead was a large mechanical mannequin

"You have a very one track mind." Dawn said, Law's vision fading back to reality where he was pinned looking at nothing, the witches arm clear through his upper chest, breaking the bottom of his throat as it pierced through his back and came out the front.

"How…?!" Law asked trying to turn to see the witch

"As I said, your mind is very one track, I don't take much pleasure in deceiving you." Dawn replied pulling her arm out, blood and splinters covering her sleeve, "The moment I had you more focused on swinging that blade instead of blocking me out of your mind, I won."

Dawn walked around to stand in front of Law, his mouth gasping for air as he looked with rage at the girl.

"You have too much bloodlust, and way too much pride." Dawn said shaking her head, "Once I got you off on one or the other, you started thinking with your fist instead of your head."

"You're a shibushen! You can't kill me like this!" Law pleaded, "Heal me! I'm a death scythe!"

"The truth is, I'm a witch, not a human…don't forget that." Dawn said leaning close to Law's face with a small grin spreading across her purplish pink lips, "Although I don't often admit it, I have a tendency to like justice…and destruction…"

With that Dawn grabbed a hold of bottom of the hole she had created in Law's torso.

"And for the record." Dawn said grasping the splintered wood tight, "Never threaten anyone I love."

With that Dawn ripped her arm forth. The wooden body of Law shredded into a burst of splinters flying across the room, blood splurting in a cloud about Dawn. The witch watched the man's head fall to the ground as she dropped his lower half, a soul slowly rising above his throat.

"Meh…I prefer shattered glass." Dawn said with a shrug as she looked down at the splintered pieces of wood

**Room 6**

"A kitchen?" Lance said confused as he looked at the large stoves around the white room

"Fitting don't you think?" A voice called out from betwixt the silver stands and pieces of cutlery

"Skylar?!" Lance asked shocked as he ran forth to see the girl huddled on the floor.

The girl sat pulling her legs in close, her head buried between her knees. Her hair hung over long and wiry as though it was unclean with some thick substance. Her frayed jacket still managed to cover her skin, even with the large red spots across its sleeves.

"You spent most of your life working in a kitchen, I figured you would be at home here." The girl said still covering her face.

"Skylar, I know they've probably made you suffer, but…" Lance began as he fell to his knees before the girl.

"They made me kill him." Skylar said in a rash voice as though she was choking on her breath.

"Who?!" Lance blurted in panic

"Stanley…." Skylar replied with a sniff, "Stanley is dead!"

Lance stood quiet for a moment unsure of what to say. Faunel covered her mouth as she tried to look away but found she could not. Taijus looked down at the girl in sadness, completely at a loss for words or actions.

"It wasn't you." Faunel said suddenly sitting on her knees beside Lance and resting her hand hoof on Skylar's shoulder, "It's the madness of this monster. It messes with the mind and forces you to do things…."

Lance turned his head to Faunel in both awe and appreciation. The fawn kept her eyes on Skylar, her face showing compassion and forgiveness, her large brown eyes watering up as she recalled her life.

"People will always say…you had a choice…you could have done this …or that…" Faunel said, her nose twitching in a snivel for a moment, "We know they mean well…but the fact is, they weren't there…they may have experienced something similar at best, but they did not experience exactly what you did….fear is a powerful force that drives us to do things we never would have dreamed of doing. But there's something much greater than fear…forgiveness…It takes a strong person to take a strike and return one, but it takes someone much stronger to not return the strike…To learn from their past and do what they must do. Whenever you feel alone in the world, know you aren't. Know that as much bad as you may have done, you can always do better. Don't judge yourself solely by your past, but also by your future. Giving up is the path of least resistance, the path darkness wants you to take because it's easy, because it's a quick release. But life is tough, you were born because you can handle it. Much like an arrow, you only go backwards so that you may soar much further…"

Skylar slowly lifted her head up revealing her eyes. One eye was pitch black with an emerald green colored iris, the second was a regular white with a deep brown iris. Her skin was a pale color as though much blood had been taken from it, her light freckles appearing very faint.

"I don't think I'm even human anymore…" Skylar said with a bit of a cry as she looked into Faunel's eyes

"I know I'm not, but that never stopped me." Faunel replied with a large smile

Skylar lifted her head more revealing her lips to also be discolored. Half of her lips were a deep black, the other half a deep red. Yet the smile spreading across them was uniform and content.

"Will the DWMA even accept me back?" Skylar asked with her eyes watering

"Of course." Faunel replied rising and putting her arm forth

Skylar grinned as she put her hand forth and grabbed the hoof. Faunel then helped the girl to her feet where Taijus and Lance couldn't help but gasp in both panic and astonishment.

The tight fitting black and white striped tank top of Skylar had a large gash in it all but turning it into a belly shirt. Yet, there was not a belly, tummy, nor gut of any kind showing, what showed instead was for more disgusting and far less flattering.

There with inch thick, quite chapped at that, lips was a mouth. It seemed to be scowling, its sharp teeth grinding together, the tips of them a bit stained with red. The mouth seemed to heave open and shut as though the girl was undulating her stomach.

"You're backing away…" Skylar said upon seeing Lance and Taijus take a step back

"They were just a bit shocked." Faunel replied taking an upset look back at the two

"You said I was fine!" Skylar yelled out throwing Faunel's hand hoof down, "But you all fear me!"

"No we don't!" Faunel retorted trying to calm the girl down

"Yes you do!" Skylar yelled out watching Lance's hand shoot up to the edge of the spear strapped to his back, "You want to kill me!"

For a moment Skylar's body was replaced with a vision of another woman. A woman with black hair wearing a black tank top and black tight pants, a large toothy grin filling her face.

"You're never happy!" Skylar yelled out, the stomach mouth snarling, "I've never been good enough for any of you!"

"That isn't true!" Faunel called out

"I'll show you!" Skylar yelled, her jacket falling off revealing two smaller mouths at the top of her shoulders, thin snake like tongues making their way into the air from them.

"Don't do this!" Lance called out grabbing Faunel and pulling her away from the girl

"Don't do what?!" Skylar asked with her eye twitching as she lowered her arm reaching for something on the ground, "You don't think I can take you do you? You have no Idea how strong I've become!"

With the burst of passion, Skylar lifted an enormous saw toothed blade resembling Stanley's blade form except quite sinister. The teeth were much more human tooth like and the handle was covered in a thick red string resembling ligament which wrapped along the back of the blade.

In a flash the girl brought the blade down, yet just as quick, lance pulled forth his small spear and blocked the attack inches from his head, halting the powerful blow.

"Skylar, you're my friend and I don't want to do this." Lance said looking at the girl's panicking eyes, "Don't make me."

"Don't talk down to me!" Skylar yelled pulling the blade back and taking another large swing, followed by another.

Taijus quickly pulled Faunel away from the fight as Skylar took large uneasy steps forward with enormous swings of her blade, Lance carefully blocking each one with expert precision.

"Unlike you, he sees my strength!" Skylar yelled as she took another wild swing, her left eye twitching and her mouth convulsing as though mad, "I've been given a special spot to fill!"

"You had a special spot!" lance yelled out before leaping into a back flip, the large blade of Skylar barely missing him, "You were one of us!"

"But for how long?!" Skylar asked taking a large vertical swipe, Lance turning his body to dodge, only to be kicked with force by the girl, "I had goals! I wanted to grow strong! I wanted to show everyone!"

As the girl began her rambling, she began walking forth, her back hunched over, her arms dangling as they dragged the enormous blade, her legs moving uneasily as they continued.

"I had an appetite for strength, but you pushed me aside." The girl said lowering her head and looking into Lance's face, "Stanley was just like you! He always said the same stupid thing: 'slow and steady'! I don't want slow and steady! I want results! I want power! And I want it now!"

"You're a glutton." Lance replied quickly throwing his feet in a kick directly into the girl's collarbone, sending her tumbling backwards, "We all knew you were, that's why we did what we did. We knew if we could make you take your time and grow you would have surpassed us all…but you've always been a little piggy…oink…oink…"

"You bast…" Skylar began leaping in the air, Lance smiled as he prepared for the attack.

Lance slid himself down a few feet, dodging the girls blade, he then quickly rolled himself over the girl and locked his arms around her neck. The girl lifted herself up, only to allow the meister to wrap his legs around her arms and midsection.

The girl's stomach mouth tried biting at Lance's legs, but to no avail. The mouths on her shoulders bit at the air, as did her normal mouth as she gasped for air. She quickly threw herself hard on the ground hoping to get Lance off of her, yet his grip remained viselike. His legs put great pressure which added with his arms, it felt as though the girls chest would burst open at any moment. And within moments she was laying limp, her eyes twitching as they looked vacantly into the air.

Lance rose to his feet throwing the girl off of him, yet before he moved a foot he quickly stomped on the girl, filling the air with a horrendous snap.

"I didn't resonate." Lance said looking at the girl unconscious on the floor, her chest slowly rising as it had trouble breathing, "If you had kept your mind straight you could have beaten me easily, but you got distracted."

As Lance turned around he was interrupted by a most unfortunate sting. Lance shot his head down to his ankle to see a large putrid maggot like monster with a wide human like mouth biting down on his tendon.

"You made a mistake…" Skylar's voice crept out of her mouth in a dragging tone

"Impossible…" Lance muttered as he stabbed the maggot with his spear and turned his eyes back to Skylar who was rising to her feet much like a newborn, having great difficulty keeping balance.

"I am what you humans lock away…" Skylar began speaking, her body moving upwards in an unnatural motion as though she was being dragged onto her feet, "I am what you hide from in your bed. I am what you pretend to not exist. When you go into your slumber , I am the one who brings you nightmares."

"What are you…?" Lance managed to ask as Skylars head crept up, her left eye closed, her right eye, the black and green one, wide open.

"I am Gluttony." Skylar's body replied with a wide stretching smile, "A vice which truly makes humans human rather than animal. I am what you all try to subdue, yet you all know you can't."

"You're a worm parading as a dragon." Lance replied throwing his arm forth, his spear outstretched towards the beast.

"That sentence describes humans much better than it describes me." Gluttony replied lifting her hands, black patterns which resembled tattoos showing across them in the patterns of eyes and mouths.

"I'm so sick of your bullsh!t!" Lance yelled swinging his blade forth only to have it caught bare handed by the beast. Lance looked with shock for but a moment before the beast threw Lance with force into an oven, knocking over the large steel device and rolling the man out of sight.

"We won't lose to you!" Taijus yelled as a large chain suddenly wrapped around Skylars arms and chest.

Gluttony turned her head to see the chains originating from the boy. She gave him a large smile as she started turning her body, pulling the chains tighter as she wrapped herself further.

"Please, teach me a lesson, I implore you to try." Gluttony said stopping before Taijus, the chains tightly grinding against her skin leaving red marks, the mouths on her shoulders licking the chains and wrapping their tongues through the links

"You're a monster." Taijus growled looking at the beast

"I'm a product of you humans." Gluttony replied leaning in close to Taijus' face, "As they say, Like father like son."

"We aren't your creator!" Taijus snarled as the girl slowly ran her long tongue up his cheek.

"Shh." Gluttony shushed as she rested her head on the boy's shoulder, "Denial is one of the stages, why don't we just skip ahead to…acceptance!"

As she said this she sank her teeth into the boy's neck with force, a sudden spurt of blood shooting out from between her teeth as the boy screamed in agony. Taijus writhed about trying to escape, yet his chain kept both the beast and himself in place. Yet to his benefit and unexpected rescuer arrived.

Gluttony turned her eye just a moment to late only to see a fist shoot forth and strike her. As the beast writhed back in pain she suddenly felt herself being lifted into the air only to be slammed down to the ground.

"How?!" Gluttony roared rolling to her feet to no longer see Taijus, but now a new foe.

"Sorry it took so long, you guys need some new doors." Daniel's smug sarcastic voice called out as he came into view wielding Taijus in flail mode.

"Who the hell are you?!" Gluttony asked snarling her lip

"He's one of us." Another voice replied from behind the beast before she was stricken forth with force tumbling across the ground.

Gluttony let out a panicked growl as she rolled to her feet seeing the boy that had struck her with what appeared to be a scythe.

"And we're Shibushen." Ryan replied looking back into the face of the monster.

"More so." Another voice added on as a female figure entered from the shadows

The beast's face shook in aggravation as it saw the green sweater wearing girl approach.

"We're friends." Dawn said brushing some of the splintered wood from her.

"Do you think you can defeat me now?!" Gluttony yelled as she rose to her feet, her stomach mouth snarling and hissing aggressively.

Suddenly the beast felt a horrendous pain shoot through its chest. It looked down to see a bright glowing shaft of light protruding through her chest leading to an extravagant pointed head.

"No." Lance said from behind the beast holding his resonated weapon, "We've always been able to defeat you."

As the man finished his sentence the beast fell to the floor limp. Lance looked down at his former friend in sadness. The mouths on her shoulders, the red marks from the chains, and the mouth on her stomach didn't mean anything to Lance, all he could see was his friend.

"Sixth room." Daniel said as Taijus transformed back to his human form and fell back onto the ground, leaning against an oven holding his neck firmly

"That means that whatever's past those doors is the monster behind all of this." Archer said walking into the room to see Lance throw his jacket over the body before him

"We need to keep moving." Dawn said squatting down in front of Lance who kneed over the corpse before him, "I know it must be difficult…"

"She deserves a proper send off." Lance said resting his hand on top of the corpse

"Who does…?" Greg asked transforming back into his human form, his eyes shifting between Faunel who was bandaging Taijus and Lance who appeared to be hugging the corpse

"No…she doesn't deserve to be remembered like this…" Lance said, tears beginning to roll down his cheeks as he pulled his jacket tighter over the body

"What are you talking about?" Archer asked moving forth with a bit of worry

"She's gone…" Lance replied as he lifted the corpse, one of its arms dangling out from the jacket, "Skylar is no more."

Archer couldn't handle what he just heard. His brain was crossed between pure shock and fury.

Hearing that a loved one has passed is one of the most sickening experiences a human being can ever go through. At first hearing the words together almost sounds like a joke. One never connects a friend to death, when one's a good friend they might as well be immortal. But sadly the only thing predictable about life is its unpredictability. When one finally grasps that there is no joke, that a loved one is dead, there's a moment of sickly surprise. A moment where your entire body is so unsure of how to react that you yourself might as well be dead for those seconds, and then comes the horrendous part, the acceptance. Accepting that they did die. A friend, a lover, a family member, whoever. It changes a person, makes them callous, makes them sensitive, breaks them, builds them. The simple fact is, no matter how much you want to kick and scream, no matter how much you loved them or hated them, they're gone and they're gone from this earth for good. But when one passes the best thing another can do is remember. Immortalize, glorify, send off, whatever you want to call it. The best way to honor a death is not through tears but through smiles, laughter, hope.

That was an important lesson the shibushen learned that day, nay, that moment. As Lance lowered the bound body of his friend Skylar onto the top of a stove which the group gathered around for one final quick goodbye. To remember their friend not as gluttony but as Skylar. To honor her life. Lance turned on the stove's flames as his final thank you before he and his group turned their back on the corpse and began for the last set of doors, the last smell of the room being that of burning flesh.

**Chapter 11- Beginning?**

**Room 7**

Upon entering the room the feeling of madness was incredible. What normally felt like a small wind of pressure was now feeling like a hurricane of force on the group. The room itself was very simple, a large round room made of bones with a golden throne in its center, a girl sitting in the throne.

"Nice, don't you agree?" Olivia asked from her golden throne, her clothes were now not the ones she had been wearing but consisted of a rather revealing white linen dress with extravagant pieces of gold dangling about from her hair, wrapping her wrists, and wrapping around her neck.

"You're the one behind all of this!" Lance yelled out approaching the throne.

"One could say that, yes." Olivia replied with a smile, "Why? Do you like it?"

"I swear to Go…" Lance began with rage filling his face

"Don't say that word in here." Olivia interrupted, "He has no place within my palace."

"You call this structure of rot a palace?" Dawn asked looking at the bones, oddly enough they began to show a pattern, not in layout but in size. Every bone was the same as its brother. That is, all skulls were the same size and thickness, all femurs, all tibias, all bones were the exact same size as their counterparts.

"Who's to say what's grand and what isn't?" Olivia asked crossing her leg over the other, "Who was it that said the rose is beautiful but not the cactus? It's merely a pointless term, you humans are rather proficient at making pointless terms."

"What are you?" Ryan asked curious at the girl's statement

"_The second was much wiser than his brother. The second focused his strength on wealth, riches, materials. He poured his soul into the hearts of the new creation. It was ingenious. He would never fade as long as any creature felt greed. As long as one did, he would have a new vessel." _The girl replied in an oddly familiar phrase, "Let me tell you a story…It's a story about a band of brothers who loved their father, they loved him with all their heart and did anything he told them to. It was an undying love, a love which no human can understand on this earth. A love based entirely without lust nor desire of any kind….But they were betrayed. Their father had another child, a horrible beast filled with imperfections, filled with apathy, lust, envy, wrath, pride, gluttony, ingratitude, hatred, and worst of all…greed….

All the brothers wanted was for their father to realize that he had made something he shouldn't have. All they wanted was for him to realize that he already had children which loved him and cared for him. But he didn't listen, he kept the imperfect b stards. By no means was this a slow pregnancy, it was a grueling era of horrendous wait for the monsters… I remember patrolling the primordial stew and seeing a small creature heave itself from the water onto the land, much like seeing a mother show her first sign of pregnancy with a monster, I hated it. I wanted to squish the fiend right there, but my brothers stopped me…they weren't good brothers, they were mindless, they didn't care of the imperfections, they were happy to be second to the new creation.

I watched with horror as the new mother had its children. Hairless mindless creeps barely capable of understanding anything. I had enough, so I revolted alongside the wiser of my brethren. We fought to show that we were worthy, to show that we were all that was necessary, but we lost…I did my best to stay in this world, to fight off the monsters that were overtaking my father's beautiful creation, but then another child of his came.

This child had all the imperfections of the hairless beasts and my mindless brothers combined. It was stupid, brutish, and always followed orders without any thought. And that child, now known to this world as Famine enslaved me….But we aren't gone.

You humans love to pretend we are, Azazel did his job well in spreading his plague, but now a New Era is on its way…the Era of The Demon!"

**Elsewhere**

"Something just isn't right here…" Rebecca said looking around the deserted scorched town, no bodies, no souls, just cinders and ash

"You're right…this doesn't look like the work of a kishin." Brian replied kicking over a crisp piece of wood which dissipated into ash, "This looks so much more mindless, so much more…chaotic…"

"Bravo…" A voice called out from behind the two as a slow clap began accompanied by a rattling sounding much like chains being slapped across a hard metal surface

**Room 7**

"You're a…" Dawn began in shock

"Fallen." Olivia replied with a smile as she licked her lips, "Or as you humans prefer to call it…Demon"

"But how?!" lance asked shocked, "How could you get here?!"

"It goes a little something like this." Olivia replied tilting her head up in thought, "Someone had the wonderful idea of releasing Asura, and his lovely wave of madness was just the boost the good humans, the ones under the name Demon, needed to bring back Azazel. And the beauty of madness is that it spreads and fills the world. I was given the strength I needed to burst from the prison Famine put me in. And to my understanding, Legion is also returning. And who knows what else benefited from that wave."

"But…this wasn't supposed to happen…" dawn said standing in shock, her eyes shaking in a sign of regret

"Dawn…I know you meant well…" Ryan said lifting his blade towards Olivia, "But if we get back to the DWMA, we need to have a serious talk."

"I really must thank you child." Olivia said clapping her hands arrogantly, "It might have been millennia more before we could have returned had you not helped Asura."

"Dawn!" Lance called out seeing the witches eyes start to water in panic and fear, "What's done is done! You heard what it said, they were coming back anyway, but now we have the chance to cut the head off the beast while it isn't at its full strength!"

"He's right!" Daniel added pulling his Flail up, "We can do this sh!t, it's just trying to make it sound like we've done what it wanted, the fact is we forced them to make their move!"

"Very courageous." Olivia replied with a most sinister smile, "But courage is nothing unless carried through."

As the demon said this the girl rose to her feet. The group watched shocked as two arms rose into the air from the girls back, followed by two more arms spreading sideways, originating from just below the other set of back arms.

"You say that you can handle the Demons era." Olivia said as each of her finger bones began pushing through her skin creating claw like extensions, "Let's see."

**Elsewhere**

"They're all gone." Janice said slowly moving forward through the iced over ground, the makeshift shelters around her completely void of any life, "But I swear I can still feel their energy."

"That is indeed unusual." War's peculiarly eccentric voice called out from a small ramekin of a thick red substance, "Perhaps they're in hiding?"

"Even if that was true, from what?" Janice asked stopping and looking down into the thick substance, a hooded figure appearing in its undulating motion with what appeared to be long silver hair flowing downwards from its side.

"That's a good question." War replied looking at the woman, "I know for a fact the medicine man there has fought Kishin off before."

"What's stronger than a kishin that would have sent of the wavelength we felt and would scare the people?" Janice asked, "A clown?"

"You would have felt it by now." War replied pondering, an odd melody beginning to come from him, the edge of a guitar slightly visible in his reflection.

"For being the right hand of a horseman…" A voice called out, Janice immediately turning around and pulling forth the fine wooden handle she used as a weapon.

When she turned she found an odd being standing before her, clearly not entirely human. He looked much like an Inuit, his skin sharing the proper shade and his features reflecting the people. He wore a poncho like covering with a traditional pattern over it, and atop his head he wore what looked like a carved wolf head with strands of leather coming out its back running down the back of his head and neck.

Yet what made the being hideous was the plague it had covering it. Half of its temple and part of its right cheek were covered in a black swirling aura. Its left eye was a bright glowing green completely with no pupil nor iris. And dangling from its neck was a pendant which bore a large glowing crack along its center.

"You're rather slow." The man finished with a smirk

"And for being a monster that scares off an entire village, you're not very threatening." Janice replied flicking her wrist, the aura whip forming from her wooden handle

"I let my actions speak for me." The man replied calmly

"So you are just a kishin." Janice said looking up and down the monster's body

"Far from it." The man replied outstretching his hands, his right hand formed of the swirling black aura, "We are many…you are one…"

**Room 7**

Olivia leapt forth at the group. In a lightning quick flash two of her back arms grabbed a hold of the faces of Lance and Ryan, slamming them to the ground as Dawn and Daniel leapt backwards.

Archer quickly shot forth three arrows, Olivia sliced all of them to pieces with a quick swipe before she tried to spring forth after the boy. Yet Lance quickly grabbed a hold of the girl's ankle and pulled her to the ground.

"There's something off about her soul wavelength…" Daniel said quickly to Archer and Dawn as lance leapt to his feet and swung his spear at Olivia

"Yeah, if you didn't gather, she's a demon!" Archer yelled back as Lance swung his blade only to have it caught in air and thrown back

"No I mean…her soul wavelength, aside from the madness, feels...familiar." Daniel said looking at the girl, her soul feeling oddly comforting underneath the madness

"Oh no…" Dawn said looking at Daniel and recognizing the look in his eyes, "Not her…"

Ryan charged forth swinging his blade at the girl, one of her arms quickly caught the blade and pulled the boy forth. Another arm grabbed Ryan by the face and slammed him into the ground. A barrage of arrows shot at the girl, yet she quickly folded all of her arms blocking the aura weapons.

Despite the monstrous look and even more horrific soul wavelength, Daniel couldn't help but see something past the evil. Her wavelength gave off a feeling as though it was a good friend in trouble, as though the evil was holding the girl captive.

"Daniel, when we're like this I can tell what you're thinking." Taijus said suddenly appearing in the glimmer of the flail, "As insane as it is…let's do it…"

**Elsewhere**

"Who are you?" Rebecca asked looking at the man before her.

The being before her was surprisingly human. Appearing to be in his thirties, the man stood before the two with dusty pants and no shirt allowing his pain to be seen. He had two large blades hanging from his sides which led the eye from the ground to his arms which had several pieces of silver looking like coins infused into his skin, his lips charred black as though badly burnt, and swaying from his back appeared to be broken chains stuck in his skin.

"How rude of me." The man said brushing his long unkempt hair from his face, his beard stained with red, "I am Judai."

"Judai?" Brian asked looking at the man, his wavelength giving off a horrendous feel of insanity and rage.

"I know I'm not quite up to the contemporary look, but I have been imprisoned for a few hundred years." Judai replied gesturing towards his demeanor, "…say…I like that jacket."

"I can feel your soul." Brian said throwing his hand forth, "You're a monster."

"Oh how I'm sick of hearing that word." Judai replied grabbing a hold of his blades, "If you're going to call me something be creative. The word monster is so mainstream."

"Whatever you say." Rebecca replied grabbing Brian's hand, the man transforming into a mutated sword.

It had a decent sized handle which led to a crossbar protecting the woman's hand from the slew of blades ahead. Two twin blades made for the main blade, with a sickle like blade in between and atop and another sickle blade underneath creating an odd beak shape.

"You're one of God's mistakes." Rebecca added

"Oh please!" Judai said annoyed stabbing his two blades into the ground, "God this, God that, get the hell over it! You humans put so much into this idea of God. Let me give you a little inside information about the man…he's a prankster. Think about it!"

Rebecca looked at the man a bit confused as he pressed his index fingers into his temple in a thinking gesture.

"God gave man instincts, he gave you an incredible gift, and then what did he do? I swear for his own amusement, his own private, cosmic gag, he set the rules in opposition. It's the greatest goof of all time!" Judai continued with eccentric amusement, "Look but don't touch. Touch but don't taste. Taste but don't swallow. Heheh…And while you're all jumping from one foot to the next, what's the sick b stard doing? He's laughing his sick ss off. He's a sadist! He's an absent landlord!"

"You're really loud, you know that right?" Rebecca asked in a disgust at the monster

"Come on!" Judai yelled rubbing his hands together, his cracked yellow nails scratching roughly at his skin, "Show some more of that rage woman! I'm a monster remember? One of God's mistakes? Why don't you use that classic shibushen self righteousness?! Come on! Teach me a lesson! Kill me!"

**Room 7**

"Soul Resonation!" Daniel and Taijus yelled in unison.

The burst of energy was incredible. Daniel's soul wavelength found a frequency in perfect harmony with Taijus allowing it to bounce and increase in strength. The power was so intense that Daniel began forming a type of armor from pure aura. The dark blue aura swirled around in the form of a valiant knight's armor.

"Daniel." Dawn said looking at the knight, Ryan flying across the room in her peripheral, "I'm sure by now you've realized what I have."

"Is it true?" Daniel asked turning to the witch for a moment, an arrow exploding in his peripheral view," Is it...she…who I think she is?"

"I suppose we'll see." Dawn replied

"Demon!" Daniel yelled turning towards the beast, the skin of its back arms now shredded leaving behind its bones still striking.

'I'll swallow your soul!" The beast roared throwing Archer and Ryan off of it and looking at Daniel

"Close." Daniel said with a smirk pulling his flail back, its chains starting to glow, "But my soul won't be the one being eaten."

As he said this he flung the flail into the air, the chain expanding in a glowing link. The blunt metal sphere at its end suddenly opened up, glowing and changing shape into a skull, its mouth wide open. The resonation didn't end there, the skull suddenly expanded transforming into a large reptilian skeleton, the tail leading into the chain.

Olivia looked surprised at the dinosaur as its face grew spikes and grew narrower. Within moments large wings spouted forth from the beasts back. The dinosaur now turning into a dragon, its fierce face snarling and growling at the small demon before it.

"Do you think this is enough?!" Olivia yelled looking at the dragon

"We'll see!" The dragon roared in taijus' voice, deep and reverberating through the draconic fangs.

The beast shot forth opening its mouth wide open. The dragon bit down hard on the small demon. Olivia lifted her arms up and held the jaws open. She struggled quite well, but the dragon was more than strong enough. And with a showing of brute force the dragon crushed its jaw down on the girl before dissipating into a cloud of settling aura.

"We did it!" Daniel called out excited as his armor disappeared and the cloud disappeared,

"No way." Ryan said with rising optimism as he saw the girl's body laid out on the floor.

"I must admit, I'm impressed." Dawn said appearing seemingly out of nowhere beside Daniel.

"Hey! For the record that was me doing the whole transformation and bite!" Taijus called out appearing in the glimmer of the flail.

"That…was indeed impressive…" A deep voice called out, everyone in the group shooting their eyes to Olivia's body, "In my state I'm quite lucky to have survived that…I mean…an attack specifically geared towards destroying madness? And at your level? Most unexpected."

As the voice said this a sickly snapping sound filled the air, the four arms on Olivia's back rising in the air before slamming into the ground and pushing forth. The arms began ripping from the girl's body, pulling forth the spine of the girl followed by her ribs. Everyone watched enthralled and disgusted as the spine ripped from the flesh of the girl and the bones began standing on their own. Last of all a skull pulled itself out, its snout extended looking almost like a raptor.

"But now…I live!" The creature roared as liquid gold filled its eye sockets creating golden eyes, "Mammon once again walks the earth!"

**Elsewhere**

"You're weak!" Janice yelled out looking at the shaman stumbling in the snow, "Is this really all the 'many' can muster up?"

"You'll regret this!" The plagued man called out trying to stand up, only to have the aura whip wrap around his ankle and take him back to the ground

"In five minutes, next week, or when I have to clean up your blood from my jacket?" Janice asked as her whip disappeared and she slowly began walking forth towards the man

"I'm not at full power yet! Once I am you'll have a true challenge." The beast pleaded rising to its knees

"Really?" Janice asked putting her boot on the creatures shoulder before kicking it back into the snow, "Do you honestly think my ego is that big? You're a monster, whether it takes me five minutes or five months to kill you, I'm going to do it as soon as I can. So say your prayers to your personal god and prepare yourself."

"We will not go like this!" The man yelled with a sudden burst of his soul wavelength, "We are Legion! We are many!"

"How are you doing that…?" Janice asked feeling the man's wavelength increase

"We've learned many new tricks over the years." The man called back rising to his feet

Janice quickly flung her aura whip wrapping around the man's chest and shoulders, binding the beast.

"That doesn't change anything." Janice retorted pulling the whip tighter

"We will have our revenge." Legion called out in a reverberating voice as its wavelength of madness started growing, "But now is not the time."

With a sudden burst of energy a cloud of snow rose up clouding the area. Janice quickly pulled forth her second whip and snapped it several times creating large pockets in the cloud to clear it quickly. By the time it was clear Legion was no longer present and Janice saw nothing.

**Elsewhere**

"The form is good, nice consistent force with your attacks, I can see why the Shibushen keep you around." Judai said as he shot his blades back and forth blocking Rebecca's swings

"Where did you come from?" Rebecca asked stabbing with her mutant blade, Judai swinging one of his dual blades around quickly, the woman ducking in the knick of time.

"Jeesh, women." Judai huffed sarcastically as he sprung backwards dodging a swing of Rebecca's blade, "Thinking you can ask questions, it's adorable. It's almost like you're a man."

"Over the last few hundred years we kind of got over the whole women being inferior to men thing." Rebecca retorted aggravated

"Oh please, men may let you think you have more power than you used to, but it's just to keep your mouth shut and your legs spread." Judai replied with a large smile as he crossed his blades to catch the mutant blade in mid air

"You're vile." Rebecca said revolted by the beast

"Think about it." Judai said moving back to speak, "Who's the one that can have their neck cut at any moment right now? The man or the woman? It's you, the woman! They're using you, forcing you to put yourself in danger while the man benefits. Your sword gets to be a death scythe from all your hard work. And even if your weapon was a woman, she would be Death's new play thing. You're just being used, just as women have all these centuries. But now you're too stupid to realize it! At least back in my day the women accepted it."

"I'm not being used!" Rebecca yelled throwing her sword forth with a wide swing only to Have Judai grab her wrist and roll her arm behind her back before pinning her to the ground.

Judai kept his foot pinning the blade to the floor as he used his other knee to hold the girl to the floor as she writhed about.

"Face it, it's what you women were designed for." Judai said leaning close to the girls ear, "You are and always have been a mere means of joy for men. Whenever your stupid sex starts making an uproar man will pretend to grant you power and solve the problem. But of course you're always okay with it."

"You're insane!" Rebecca yelled trying to push the man off of her

"Am I?" Judai asked, "I mean sure, you hate me, but that isn't an excuse to ignore what I say. The real problem is that you women never really know what to argue about. It's always nonsense about how this is that or that is this when it should be different. It's always medial things that no one honestly cares about. I mean, who gives a sh!t about how some random piece of paper portrays you, by constantly arguing about the pointless you will always stay where you are…under man."

"You've been gone for hundreds of years like you said!" Rebecca groaned, "How would you know?!"

"Like talking to a brick wall." Judai groaned, "But you know…being trapped for hundreds of years there is something I've rather missed…"

As Judai said this he slowly and firmly grabbed a hold of the back of Rebecca's belt, his yellowed nails slightly digging into her lower back as he began tugging at the leather piece.

"What are you doing?! Stop!" Rebecca yelled as she could feel her belt starting to rip as the monster yanked on it

"Back in my day women dressed so conservatively…" Judai began as he liked his lips, the back of the woman's pants starting to lower revealing the soft pink fabric underneath, "now you cows all but present your entire self to the men…I must admit it's an appreciated change…"

"Get off of her!" Brian yelled transforming into his human mode and using a huge burst of adrenaline to push Judai off of him and tackle the fiend to the ground where he wasted no time in delivering a barrage of punches.

"Go on!" Judai yelled as Brian threw forth punch after punch, defiling the fiend's face, transforming it into a battered pulp, "Show me what you've got!"

Brian continued to look at the cackling monster as he threw forth punch after punch, his knuckles beginning to shred from the abuse. The blood of Blakes mixed with the blood of Judai in a mess completely indeterminable. Judai continued to laugh as his face was no longer recognizable, the pulp made of skin and blood dripping off onto the ground.

Brian lifted his hand, his fingers starting to merge into a blade for a moment before he turned his head to see a large rock beside him. His eyes twitched between Judai's face and the rock.

"Go on." Judai urged, "Embrace the madness, take your revenge, make me suffer."

Brian's eye twitched for a moment in rage as he shot his hand forth to grab the rock. He lifted the chunk of stone into the air, the morning sun blocked from Judai's view as the piece blocked it out. Yet as it came down a hand grabbed a hold of Brian's wrist stopping it.

"An eye for an eye and the whole world's blind." Rebecca said standing behind Brian, the trails of tears still visible on her cheeks, her pants sagging on her hips slightly from being stretched and torn.

"You want to protect this monster?" Brian asked looking back at his comrade

"Stupid b!tch…" Judai groaned irritated," That's exactly why you'll always be where you are."

"No." Rebecca replied crossing her arms as though to shield herself, "If I allowed him to kill you like this I couldn't forgive myself. I'm better than that…than you."

"Justify it as you want." Judai groaned letting his head drop back to the ground, "You're still a stupid whore and you'll never get anywhere in this life."

The instant Judai finished his sentence he shot his hands up grabbing a hold of Brian's neck before rolling over, pinning him to the ground. Brian groaned as his throat was pinned closed. Rebecca quickly grabbed a hold of Judai and ripped him off of her friend, the monster rolling on the ground before rising back to his feet.

As Rebecca shot her hand down to grab Brian, Judai threw a large brown bottle onto the ground from his pocket, the shattered glass suddenly exploding into flame. The monster laughed as the wall of flames shot into the sky, blocking himself off from the two.

"One day." Judai managed to squeeze out through his laugh, "One day you'll actually be a worthy opponent."

Brian watched as the monster walked away from the wall of fire, leaving into the distance. He wanted to follow but he still had trouble breathing, he was not in the condition to follow.

"It's too late." Rebecca said kneeling down beside Brian, "He's gone."

**Room 7**

"The Sandman's coming in his train of cars" Mammon began with forceful determination as he Caught Ryan from the air, his long bony fingers wrapping around the boys head.

"With moonbeam windows and with wheels of stars." Mammon continued as he grabbed Ryan's legs with another set of his arms.

"so hush you little ones and have no fear." Mammon said slamming Ryan down hard on his knee before rolling the boys unconscious corpse off onto the ground

"The man-in-the-moon is the engineer." Mammon said turning his Head to Archer as the boy attempted to shoot arrows at him.

"The railroad track tis a moonbeam bright." Mammon's voice continued as he disappeared and reappeared behind Archer, slamming the boy's head into the ground with such force it created a small crater.

"that leads right up into the starry night." Mammon spoke with his golden tongue as Daniel swung down his flail at the beasts head.

"so put on your 'jamas." Mammon spoke pulling Daniel in close before tossing him away, "and say your prayers."

"That's cute." Dawn called out grabbing the attention of mammon who turned to see the girl throw off her green sweater revealing a white button up blouse underneath, "My mom used to say it when I was a child."

"The humans have long forgotten who it's really about." Mammon replied slowly walking forth towards the witch, "It's about my brother Azazel and his prison in the moon."

"What do you hope to gain from this?" Dawn asked shaking her head and gesturing towards the bodies across the floor, "Do you think killing will solve anything? Do you think it will get you back to where you want…? You have so much strength, you could live a great life if you use it for good. You could have everything you want and more."

"My my, such beautiful words." Mammon said holding his left arm up to his chest, "It is too bad I…what do you humans say? Don't give a sh!t?... I want the humans to be dead, and you witches are nothing more than roaches. If you die it means nothing to me."

"Good to know you're a lost cause." Dawn said shaking her head, "Now I won't feel bad for doing what I'm about to do."

"And what's that?" Mammon asked intrigued with gnarled curiosity.

"While you were busy hurting my friends I got a hold of something." Dawn said with a smile as she lifted her hand up revealing the crimson blade from the throne

"Give me that!" Mammon yelled charging forth

"Come get it!" Dawn yelled back preparing herself

The beast tackled Dawn and took her through the doors slamming her hard into the ground. Dawn looked up at the beast with a smile as she held the handle of the blade firmly, the waving blade piercing the beast through the neck.

Ryan groaned as he was aided to his feet by Ian. The boy felt a horrendously sharp pain all along his back, finding it difficult to even move. Ian did his best to aid his partner forth towards the collapsed doors where they could see Dawn's legs.

"I did it." Dawn's voice groaned as Ryan and Ian started to come into her visibility.

They both looked shocked to see Dawn laid out on the floor, three large pools of blood forming along her torso. Clasped firmly in her hand was the blade, completely still and serene, yet giving off an enormous uneasy feeling.

**Chapter 12- The End of the Beginning or the Beginning of the End?**

**Unknown Location**

"Will they be okay?" A familiar voice asked looking over the depraved bone building, shibushen rushing inside to gather the injured.

"I'm sure they will be. They have death on their side." A second voice replied pulling up her dark blue hoodie's hood to cover her face

"Are you sure you don't want to join them?" The first asked, a black jacket's collar being pulled up high

"I think it would be best if I didn't." The blue hooded one replied watching two shibushen walking out of the front with a stretcher, Dawn's face barely visible, "And what about you? Don't you have family you'd want to join?"

"No." The feminine voice replied a bit sad, "I don't have anything waiting for me. Had I died in there, no one would have missed me."

"I did die in there." The blue hooded girl said with a smile as she tucked her red hair back into her hood, "It's not as satisfying as you think to have people cry over you…try to torch your body…"

"Well, I guess we have to go find a new life." The black jacket woman said shaking her head, her blonde hair adjusting itself as she put her hand out.

"It's the best thing we can do." The red haired girl replied grabbing a hold of her new comrade's hand, "Things are starting to get a tad hectic."

**DWMA**

"So…do you care to explain the recent events to me?" Famine asked through his mirror looking at Death who held his head firmly as though it would fall to pieces if he didn't grasp it.

"…I don't even know where to begin…" Death replied with a bit of a groan, "There's been quite some developments…

The first one I feel I should tell you about is mammon…the demon…He made his return. A small group of our shibushen attacked…and surprisingly successfully defeated the beast. Granted there was much damage and confirmed fatalities. Our shibushen Gwen and Skylar were both confirmed dead. And our shibushen Ryan, Dawn, Archer, and Lance were injured rather severely.

Secondly War's right hand Janice discovered a second beast in the north. Somehow Legion escaped his prison and seems to be rebuilding his power.

And last of all one of my Death Scythes and his meister discovered the beast known as Judai roaming free, still regaining his strength."

"So essentially we now know three demons are free along with the Kishin and Judai the beast of rage and insanity." Famine said nodding his head, his eyes wide open, "I think my heart just sank into my feet."

"Well there is some good to it." Death replied, "Heather, War's wife the black tear, has a way of following a soul's wavelength. In essence she can determine where each of these beasts are by following their insanity."

"Well that is helpful." Famine replied

"But here's the problem." Death continued, "We aren't strong enough to take all of these monsters down as is. We need time to prepare, but the longer we wait the stronger they get."

"Two horsemen, Thor, Blackbeard, and Veritas combined aren't enough?" Famine asked

"Short answer no." Death replied, "I'm more than positive with their horses they are, but the plan is to not summon the horses. I can't be present due to my…situation…and Pestilence refuses to help. I need time to prepare my shibushen, and you and the others need to freshen up, it's been a while since we've fought beasts of this caliber."

"Very well." Famine nodded his head, "Two months. Within two months we must be ready and we must have the creatures' location. I will not allow for innocents to die because we need time."

"Understood." Death said, "I do believe it's time to gather the next Spartoi..."

**DWMA-Infirmary **

"So you left without telling me to fight a demon?" Mary asked looking down at Ryan in his stiff hospital bed, his torso wrapped in bandages, a scar across his cheek, and a bag of nutrients hanging beside his head.

"In fairness I didn't know it was a demon when I left." Ryan groaned, "If I had, I probably would have prepared better…angry?"

"Oh no, I'm totally fine." Mary replied with an enormous amount of sarcasm, "What were you thinking?! You almost got yourself killed."

"Nonsense." Ian said suddenly walking into the room, "He almost got me killed too."

"Where were you?" Ryan asked painfully turning his head to see his comrade

"Aside from checking up on the others." Ian replied grabbing a chair beside the bed and sitting down, "I was sending my condolences to Gwen's family."

"How'd they handle it?" Ryan asked watching Ian look off into the distance upset

"About as well as anyone would if they found out their daughter just died." Ian replied, "But that isn't important right now, we need to focus on getting you guys back on your feet."

"What's the damage?" Mary asked turning to Ian

"Where should I begin?" Ian asked shaking his head, "Dawn had severe puncture wounds and quite some blood loss, I don't even remember how many stitches she ended up needing, not to mention the skin grafts. Archer broke his nose and got a severe cut in his left eye, they aren't sure if he'll be able to see out of it anymore. And Last of all Lance. Besides a broken arm and some internal bruising, he's probably in the best shape out of them."

"That's awful." Mary said shocked

"That isn't the worst part." Ian replied looking down, "That isn't taking into account the mental damage. You don't just see your friend turn into a monster and walk away okay. And you sure as hell don't stand in the presence of a demon and stay fine. Dawn, Faunel, and Taijus had it the worst because they're the most perceptive to wavelengths. Aside from the nasty bite that landed centimeters away from major arteries, Taijus is experiencing what they assume to be PTSD. Faunel's species isn't meant to be around that much madness, it literally damaged her mind, she keeps having seizures and sometimes her muscles will tense up on her making her a statue…Dawn on the other hand may have been able to handle the mental damage, but she isn't handling the physical damage well. We're all really messed up…"

"You guys aren't the only ones." Mary spoke, "You know the death scythe Brian and his meister Rebecca? They were attacked by some creature."

"Kishin?" Ryan asked

"Clown?" Ian added

"Neither, it was much more insane and much stronger." Mary replied, "Whatever it was it really did some damage to them both. Neither have said anything about it to anyone except for Death, and ever since they've stayed hidden."

"Ugh." Ian groaned sinking into his chair, "Sometimes this world sucks…"

**Queen Anne's Revenge Academy**

"So let me get this straight Ben." Blackbeard's voice reverberated in the large room, thick smoke and a heavy smell of rum coming from the man's 'throne' if it could be called that.

For what the man sat on was a large brick shaped piece of material with swords, guns, knives, spears, and everything between stabbed into it creating a backrest with a large guillotine protruding behind it all.

"We have two months?" Blackbeard asked, the two small humanoid's sitting beside him suddenly standing up, their small arms connecting.

They both had small bodies which looked as though they were covered in pajamas, no fingers nor toes, just rounded nubs. Atop the small bodies were two large round heads almost comical looking, one looking like a jack o lantern the other looking like a cartoonish black cat.

"That's correct." The figure replied from the darkness, his body hidden by thick boots and a large cardinal jacket, a large hat atop his head shading his face

"Ah sh…" Blackbeard groaned sitting up from his reclined position, "What about Perseus, is he back yet?"

"No sir, he's still on his honeymoon…he just left a day ago…" Ben replied as Blackbeard rose to his feet, a large jug swaying in his hand

"Jeesh, back in my day…" Blackbeard began, the chibi's beside him circling his drunken steps forth, in an odd attempt to keep him balanced

"Our Day Captain." Ben retorted, "We're the same age."

"Potato Tomato." Blackbeard retorted resting his long slender gloved fingers on Ben's shoulder, "Back in the day there was no such thing as a honeymoon, you just tie the knot and that's the end of it."

"So you don't plan to do anything special with Veritas when you're married?" Ben asked

"Bah! Like that old bitty would ever!" Blackbeard spewed before stumbling back a few steps, "I give her my heart…and she eats it…"

"Captain, your heart turned to sand decades ago." Ben said helping Blackbeard back into his seat

"Bah! Flint! Lock!" Blackbeard yelled, "Where are those short devils?"

"Standing beside you captain." Ben replied gesturing towards the small humanoids standing beside Blackbeard

"Ah! There you are! Get me some more rum!" Blackbeard commanded, his two small friends trotting off together, "And don't you dare take a sip! You're too damn short to be drinking!"

"Captain, I understand the recent occurrences have been tough." Ben began, "But you really must control yourself."

"Bah!" Blackbeard blurted, "My wench is mad at me, my pupil is off with his wench, the world is nearing its end, why not get drunk?!"

"Because…" Ben replied counting off on his fingers, "First of all, Veritas is upset with you because of you doing things like this, second, Perseus had been planning to take Miss Sharpe on a trip for a while, and lastly the world isn't going to end."

"It might as well!" Blackbeard retorted dropping his large jug allowing it to roll between the blades stuck in his throne, "I'm held together by wire and prayer, I'm officially getting too old for this."

As Blackbeard said this his two small friends came trotting into the room holding a large jug with them. As they entered, a large patch of light came with them illuminating Blackbeard. He had no flesh left on his body, he was entirely a skeleton. A tattered tricorn sat upon his head with a few red hairs falling out from under it. His shirt had wooden buttons which looked almost as eroded as the tattered clothe it connected. He had an old leather buckle hanging over his shoulder and a large grey jacket hiding most of his skeletal body.

"Captain, we still have plenty of time for Perseus to return and train." Ben replied, "Besides, we still have Bella, Duncan, Domashi, Brody…"

"Don't list off my mates to me!' Blackbeard yelled out before falling face first onto the ground, narrowly missing his small friends and their jug

"Captain, are we going to train or get drunk?" Ben asked as the light struck his face revealing it to entirely skeletal as well

"First on' then t' other." Blackbeard groaned from the ground.

**Asgard**

"Two Months?" A feminine voice asked looking at the enormous stature of Thor.

"We've had less time to prepare for worse before." Thor replied in his booming voice as he set down his thick silver helm

"The fact we're going to try and fight a demon doesn't bother you in the slightest?" The woman asked approaching the large man, her golden hair sashaying past her black eye patch.

"Battle is an honor." Thor replied handing off a scroll to a servant who quickly took off, "And the chance to preserve your mothers honor is just as valuable."

"So is that what this is?" The woman asked, "A chance to avenge her death? You're willing to put your life on the line just for revenge?"

"I'm willing to put my life on the line for humanity." Thor replied staring outside of a large open window, the light illuminating his face, "Demons are much worse than most realize, and given the chance, they will destroy humanity. Of course I thrive for a chance to avenge Mjolnir, but there is such a thing as priorities."

"The almighty Thor using logic?" The woman asked crossing her arms, "I wonder how the farmers will catch their airborne pigs."

"We shall bring Idun and Bragi." Thor said standing in the suns warm rays, "two moths is more than enough time to prepare."

**The Red Monastery **

"Battle can and usually does arise over night, having prep time is a luxury." War's booming voice said as its owner walked through the long hallway, monks and nuns walking by.

"True, but that's all the more reason we should take advantage of it while we can." The tall nun beside him replied, her face uncomfortably young and cute for her occupation.

"Sister Ashley." Another woman's voice called out approaching from behind, the young nun quickly turning her head.

The young nun looked to see a woman approaching. The woman had long straight dark grey hair running down her back. Her body wasn't exceptionally thin or frail, yet ran on the thin side. She wore a small dark red shirt along with rather short tan shorts showing off her long legs. The woman was odd to look at as she looked young yet refined, as though her body had simply stopped aging decades ago, which ironically was very much the case. For the woman was Heather, War's partner both in the battlefield and bedroom.

"Gather all who will be joining in the battle." Heather said tapping the nun on the shoulder, "We will begin accelerated training in exactly two hours…also tell my brother to get off his lazy butt and prepare the bus."

"Right away Miss Heather." The nun replied in her chipper voice as she took off down the hall.

"You." Heather called out reaching War's side, his enormous gauntlet swinging back and forth, his red hood bouncing, "You need to make sure you can keep yourself in check on the battlefield."

"Yeah yeah, I know what I'm doing." War replied pushing open a large set of twin doors revealing a grand throne room

"No 'yeah yeah', we can't have another incident like we did last time." Heather retorted as her horseman husband threw himself onto his throne and pulled forth a fine guitar from beside it, "They still say there's less than a thousand unicorns left."

"They had it coming." War shrugged as he began checking his guitars tuning

"You can't justify outbursts with 'they had it coming'." Heather grumbled resting her hands on her rather prominent hip bones, "If something happens, we all need to know you can control yourself."

"I'm doing a fine job with it aren't I?" War asked looking up at his wife, his hood hiding half his face, yet his white eyes showing through along with his mouth, a thick scar under his lips.

"Well, yes, at the moment." Heather replied

"Ey! Where t' 'ell are my bloody tools?!" A voice yelled out from an adjacent hall

"Where you left them!" War yelled back

"Nd where the 'ell is that?!" The voice yelled in response even louder

"Sorry, duty calls." War said with a smile as he rose to his feet and began walking

"This isn't over." Heather sighed as she crossed her arms

"This isn't over." War mumbled flapping his hand

"What was that?!" Heather yelled out

"Nothing!" War yelled back rushing off down the hallway

**The Pyramid of Stela-Sehel Island**

"Child do you have everything packed for the journey?" Famine asked taking his small paces into the large stone room lit by a few torches illuminating the hieroglyphs covering the walls.

"Yes Father." The boy in the room replied.

The boy was in his twenties and hardly a boy at all. He was much taller than his father and looked like a typical young adult. His hair was short and well trimmed with a large design of an eye made of white on its side. His face had surprisingly well shaped features and hanging from his necklace was an ankh.

"Dzoser will be accompanying me." Famine said gesturing to the muscular man covered in tattoos of hieroglyphs standing beside him, "And Amunet shall accompany you."

"Where is she?" Famine the Kid asked lifting his woven bag over his shoulder.

"She is waiting to leave." Famine nodded tapping his stick like cane on the ground, "Now son, I do not want you taking this situation lightly, what we train for will be the most challenging battle of your life."

"I am well aware, and I want to help." Kid said with a confident smile.

"Good, I now you will do well." Famine said with a smile, "Soon courage will be the greatest weapon you can have, do not forget it."

"Yes…do not forget." A reverberating voice spoke in the darkness, two glowing red eyes piercing the darkness

"What is the plan brother?" Another voice asked, his glowing green eyes piercing the darkness and reflecting off of the large eye they stood around which showed Famine

"You heard him, two months." The first voice replied, "We have two months to prepare ourselves."

"Why don't we just attack them now?!" A third voice asked accompanied by a loud rattling of chains

"Because." The first deep reverberating voice replied calmly, "They're going through all the trouble of training, we should at least let them use it."

"What are you suggesting?" The green eyed beast asked

"Asura is still on the loose." The deep voice replied slowly piercing the eye they watched, the image fading away as the Cyclops it belonged to perished, "And if they want a battle, we still need an army."

"I can gather the strongest of the kishin." The green eyed beast said

"I can capture Asura." The rattling chain bearer added

"And I shall meet with our friends, Demon, and see what we can…" The voice said with a hearty chuckle, "How do the humans put it?...Muster up…"

**Chapter 13-When the going gets tough?**

**Nearly Two Months until Assault **

"So let's see what we have here…" Maka's voice called out looking over the small gathering of shibushen, "So this will be the next Spartoi?"

"Appears so…" Daniel's sarcastic tone replied

"What do we have to work with?" Maka asked turning back to the white haired man behind her, Soul Evans.

"Let's see." Soul replied, his sharp teeth showing through his lips as he spoke

"I see why they call him eater…" Lance whispered leaning over to Faunel.

"You don't know that…" Ian whispered leaning over to the duo, "Maybe he's just a man that prefers to…"

"We have the weapon Jack and his meister William." Soul began looking at his listed clipboard, "We have the dual weapons Derrick and Darryl. Meister Ryan and his weapon Ian. Archer and his bow Greg. The lovely Faunel and her partner Lance. Daniel and his new weapon Taijus. And last of all, the witch Dawn who will be partnered with the candle Mary."

"That's it?" Mary asked looking at the small gathering, "We're all the new Spartoi will be comprised of?"

"Spartoi isn't about the numbers, it's about the strength the numbers have." Maka replied looking at the group, "And all of you have proven to be extremely skilled meisters and weapons, and most importantly, you've all proven very strong against insanity."

"So we're being put at the front lines because we've been able to defend ourselves from insanity?" Ryan asked

"Short answer; yes." Soul replied

"Long answer; you've proven that you're all adept at fighting and defending yourselves against insanity and with some training you can all be some of the strongest meisters and weapons in the world." Maka added, "The problem is that we now have less than two months to hone your skills."

"And you decided to switch our weapons." Dawn retorted gesturing towards the group, "You switched the partners of half of us, you even gave me a weapon despite the fact I don't use one."

"We made careful calculations in picking these new pairings." Soul called out, "We left no stone unturned, each of you will do your best with your new partner, even if you don't expect to."

"So a candle will somehow help me?" Dawn asked with a lifted brow, "…no offense Mary."

"None taken." Mary nodded

"The way you infiltrate minds is sloppy at best." Maka replied, "It's similar to fighting a tide. Sure if it's a weak one you can manage, but stronger ones can easily push you away. Using Mary's light you can create a sort of push back, like having something in front of you to fight the tide."

"And what about me?" A very tan oriental boy asked

"And me?" Another who looked nearly identical except for slightly more prominent cheek bones and a set of glasses.

"Before you two weren't really being used to your best ability." Soul replied, "But what better person to resonate than your own twin? You two know each other so well and your souls are so similar that teaming you two up seemed like a no brainer."

"Just curious…" Lance suddenly piped up, his arm in a sling and cast, "I know all this training is important, but there's a certain rumor I feel we all want answered…Is it true that the Horsemen are coming here to the DWMA?"

"That isn't really something you should be worrying about." Maka called out, "If they are…you'll know when they get here…"

**DWMA Prison**

"Day…I've officially lost track…" A voice said as the sound of a rock hitting stone repeated over and over in the empty quiet halls, the man's fingernails filed down roughly as though he had done so with the cement floor, the rock he bounced off the wall almost spherical from being tossed so many times, "Luna still has yet to come for me…or even contact me…And Dawn…the little witch get's to be up top helping the shibushen while I rot…."

The man's face was unshaven and carried stubble across it. His metal spherical lip piercing underneath his bottom lip looked partly rusted and stained with blood. Even the man's hair was long and unkempt.

"Of course they find some excuse to keep me here." The man continued as he rolled the rock around in his hand, his fingertips scarred and tattered, "For my 'past actions' and whatnot….this system is broken…"

The man slowly lifted his hand to his head, over his eye an eye patch locked in place firmly with a tight buckle.

"You're right, it is."A sudden voice bounced around in the man's head

"Luna? Dawn?" The man asked looking up in excitement

"No, but I was sent here by one." The voice replied in deep reply, its voice sounding oddly like a croaking frog

"Are you here to free me?" The man asked leaping to his feet and looking around

"Yes, but there's something you must do when I do." The voice responded with a chuckle

"Just who exactly are you?" The man asked looking around

"Come now Eric." The voice began, "There's no need for hostility, I'm on your side, Luna herself requested I come here."

"I don't care if that's what you claim…" Eric retorted, "Who are you?!"

"I've been known as many names." The voice replied, "But the most common…is Amanojaku."

**Queen Anne's Revenge Academy**

"Perseus?" Blackbeard asked watching the man parade down his hall with an upset look on his face, "You're back early."

"Not by choice." Perseus retorted upset brushing his shaggy blonde hair from his eyes

"What happened?" Ben asked looking at the anger in the teacher's eyes.

"Amanda and I were in Japan as planned when we were attacked!" Perseus yelled back, "Some little kishin shot a flaming bolt at us!"

"That's peculiar…" Blackbeard replied stroking his chin, or rather, the bottom of his jawbone

"So I don't exactly think going on a vacation is best while demons are on the loose." Perseus replied cracking his fingers in aggravation

"Did you at least destroy the kishin?" Ben asked

"Of course." Perseus replied with a nod, "Little monster was persistent, but I killed it."

"Did you happen to catch a name?" Blackbeard asked

"Yes actually." Perseus replied with the first hint of joy from his presence, "Something weird, called itself…Pukwudgie..."

**DWMA Prison**

"Alright 'Amanojaku'." Eric replied falling back to the ground and resting his back on the cold metal door, "If you can prove to me that you work for Luna, I'll consider listening."

"Heheh" The beast replied in a hearty chuckle "I know about your brother."

Eric shot his head upwards with surprise and a bit of anger upon hearing the word.

"That's right." Amanojaku said with a fowl air of joy in his voice, "I know all about your little family. Eruka, Erik, and even Free."

"You have my attention." Eric replied coldly, "No need to continue."

"Luna has had…a change of plans." Amanojaku said with a cruel tone, "You did your job very well in helping revive Asura, but now there's a chance to do something even better."

"Better, yeah, because reviving Asura was so great." Eric said shaking his head

"Oh it was." Amanojaku replied, "And now there's a chance not only for revenge, but also for a chance to fix the world."

"What are you talking about?" Eric asked annoyed

**Asgard**

"Mighty Thor, it is an honor." A very large man wearing a fine kilt and a crown of gold said giving a small bow of his head before Thor.

"King Fergus, it is good to see you." Thor replied in his hearty voice patting the man on the shoulder, "And who is this lovely young lady?"

"This is my daughter, Princess Elinor." Fergus replied allowing the young woman to walk past him. She was a fine young lady, still in her teenage years yet sophisticated and respectable, clearly raised as royalty.

"I understand you want me to train some of your men to fight the demon, yes?" Thor asked walking forth beside Fergus, leaving the princess behind

"Aye, I understand how powerful they can be." Fergus replied, his voice getting fainter to the girl as he and Thor walked, "My greatest men wish to help, and I would like you to train them."

"I'd like to help too…" Elinor said in a meek whisper looking down at the ground, "If that idiot Bremmus can help, I don't know why I can't…"

**DWMA Prison**

"…restoring everything to the way it should be." Amanojaku continued, "Think about it, was it not humans that put you in here? Was it not humans that caused your brother's death?"

"So what If it was?" Eric asked, "Don't get me wrong I'm not a human lover, but they shouldn't be entirely wiped out, they too are part of nature."

"We won't kill them all." Amanojaku said in a tsk, "We will simply thin out the herd, kill the weak and sick, and those who refuse to help the greater good…like the Shibushen."

"…I'm not saying I'll do it…" Eric began, "But if I were to say yes…what would you have me do?"

**Queen Anne's Revenge Academy**

"So…saying this magical code did exist, why would this Broda be guarding it?" A nearly unnaturally muscular man in a pure white rounded mask with two simple eye holes asked, "And not someone like Death or War?"

"Domashi, Bro… Bromashi…" The dark skinned boy beside him replied, "There's far more to the code than raw strength…you have to feel it…be one with it…"

"So it's like some weird feng shui thing?" A girl beside the two asked, her volumous black hair moving with her as she followed a rhythmic pattern along with the other two, an odd fusion of yoga and krav maga.

"No, Bro-bean, you're missing the point." The dark skinned boy retorted, "The code is more than a simple physical means, or some over hyped spiritual mumbo jumbo, the code is within all of us, yet only a few of us can access it properly."

"So then why does it need a guard if it's in all of us?" A boy also following the patterns, his short blonde hair spike up into a point, asked

"Duncan has a point." Domashi nodded

"Bah!" The dark skinned boy, Brody, retorted, "You just can't explain the code to normal people."

"Trust me, we're far from normal." The girl, Bella, laughed, "We're a band of misfits being taught to fight demons by a skeleton."

**DWMA Prison**

"A new ally of your master recently took the first steps in a major turnabout." Amanojaku said, "But we need to finish the process….All you need to do is find the girl Rebecca…then use that magic eye of yours to make her madness swell, if all goes as planned, something spectacular will grow from her soul."

"A kishin?" Eric asked

"No, no, something much more wonderful." Amanojaku replied as the large metal door suddenly opened up, "When you complete your mission, Judai will explain what…"

"Judai?" Eric said confused as he rose to his feet and poked his head out the door, no one in sight down the prison hall

"Remember…Rebecca." The voice said one last time before the buckle on Eric's eye patch suddenly unclipped and the piece fell to the floor

"Rebecca…" Eric repeated as he took a step forward, the ability to move freely feeling odd to his restrained muscles.

**Elsewhere**

"Alright so I think I have it all organized." Liz began looking at a small stack of papers, "We have the new Spartoi: Archer, Daniel, Darryl, Dawn, Derrick, Faunel, Greg, Ian, Lance, Mary, Ryan, and Taijus."

"Okay, good…" Kid replied scribbling notes down on a small pad of paper, "Who else?"

"We have most of the Old Spartoi at our disposal." Liz replied, "Black Star, Crona, Drake, Harvard, Jacqueline, Kim, Nieves, Ox Ford, Sid, and Tsubaki."

"Alright, quite some talent in there." Kid nodded, "In regards to Death Scythes and their meisters, who do we have?"

"Maka, Me, Marie, Patty, Soul, You, and Yumi" Liz replied, "Keep in mind Brian and Rebecca are still…how do you say…recovering…"

"I'm sure they'll be fine, they're both tough." Kid replied, "So far we're at thirty-one total, but when you account for which ones are weapons you can practically cut that number in half. So we have roughly fifteen to fight two demons, Asura, and Judai."

"That's just our numbers." Liz replied, "Keep in mind we still have the others, the horsemen and their students…besides, it only took a small number of our students to take down Mammon."

"Yes, but there was heavy sacrifice with Mammon." Kid retorted, "And he barely had any of his power, these beasts are all much more powerful….have the others reported their forces?"

"Yes, but each only has a small handful of students." Liz said looking at a small list, "War will be coming with Heather, Oswald, Janice, Sister Ashley, Gabriel, Jonathan, and Glenn."

"…you weren't kidding about small numbers." Kid sighed, "What about famine?"

"Even less." Liz replied pointing to a small list of names, "Famine, Famine the Kid, Dzoser, and Amunet. But that doesn't even compare to Veritas, she's coming alone."

"What about Blackbeard and Thor?" Kid asked wiping his face as though it would clear his aching head

"Thankfully, both will be providing a bit more than the others." Liz replied, "Due to a deal with a certain tribe, Thor will be bringing a unit of fifty warriors along with his personal students Idun and Bragi. Blackbeard on the other hand will be accompanied by his weapons Lock and Flint, his friend Ben, his most trusted pupil Perseus, and a small list of students including: Bella, Brody, Domashi, and Duncan. All of which he claims to be the best of his academy."

"With some training we might just make this." Kid sighed, "…might…"

**Elsewhere-DWMA**

Eric slowly stumbled through the empty halls careful to listen for any sign of others. His footsteps were very uneven and seemed like they might cause him to fall at any moment.

"I can't believe this…" Eric thought annoyed, "Luna lets me rot in that prison and now she's calling in favors…"

The slightest creek in the hallway caused Eric to cling to the wall as though he would blend in. Of course it was nothing but a settling floorboard underneath his own foot. A witch in the center of death city was not a simple experience. For Eric it felt much like being a rat inside a crazy cat lady's house, around any turn he could meet his end.

"…fine…" Eric could hear a faint voice as he neared one of the apartment doors

The witch leaned in close, the soul wavelength he could feel felt very distinct. A normal human couldn't understand the feeling entirely, but it's much like feeling an egg half boiled. The shell is firm yet retains some softness to it, the contents in a halfway point between solid and firm.

"But you need to speak…" The voice on the opposite side of the door continued, Eric leaning in close to catch the conversation.

"It feels like there's a knot inside me…" A woman's voice replied inside the room, "Who would choose to be alone, imprisoned by their broken memories?"

"I just don't understand…" Brian spoke, a slight noise outside his door catching his attention for a mere second before he turned back to Rebecca, "What did Judai's soul do? How does one's essence corrupt memories?"

"I don't know, his soul was so horrendous …" Rebecca replied in her normal tone before her head twitched and her voice took on a deeper quality, "Who set that train in motion? Where has it come from? I know I'm guilty of something, but punishment never suits the victims of a crime."

"Damn it…I know you're in there." Brian moaned resting his hands on the seated woman's knee, "This is only getting worse by the day!"

"I know, I'm trying…" Rebecca replied for a brief sane sentence before her head twitched yet again, "Threats, promises, and good intentions don't amount to action. Every picture tells a story. Sometimes we don't like the ending. Sometimes we don't understand it."

"Who's talking?!" Brian yelled before catching himself and calming down, "Rebecca…with whatever sanity you can muster through whatever disease Judai gave you, tell me what I can do. I'm on edge here…"

"Good, when you aren't on edge you're taking too much space." Rebecca replied with a large grin, her hair falling over her eyes, "She can't go home again. No surprise really. Only a few find the way and most of them don't recognize it when they do. Delusions die hard. Only the savage regard the endurance of pain as the measure of worth…Forgetting pain is convenient, recalling it, agonizing, but recovering the truth is worth the suffering and our sanity, though damaged, can be safe…"

"If that's true…" Brian began before his door suddenly burst down.

The death scythe leapt to his feet only to be shot with an invisible burst of energy and forced into the opposite wall. Eric rushed into the room and grabbed a hold of Rebecca, turning the girl to face him. As his eye began glowing, staring into the girl, her hand suddenly shot forth piercing his chest.

"The world is upside-down." Rebecca said in her deep tone and large stretching grin as Eric quickly pushed the woman off of him, "The inmates run the asylum now."

"You!" Brian yelled out leaping forth, his hand and forearm turning into a blade. "I should take your head for this!"

"Do it!" Eric yelled back holding his fresh wound, "I'm ready."

"No…I'm not going to kill you like this." Brian replied with a smile as he held his blade close to the witch's neck, "But you will do something for me…"

**Chapter 14-Tick Tock?**

**One Month until Assault**

"What is that thing?" Dawn asked looking at the enormous red bus parked before the steps of the DWMA, two large silver tusks protruding out of its front grill.

"Just a bus." Lance replied taking a bite out of a half eaten apple in his hand.

"No way, the wavelength coming off that thing is enormous." Faunel retorted swaying her legs over the large drop she sat over

"Guess that's the only vehicle that can contain the ego of whoever's in it." Daniel said with a self satisfied smile, the combined groans of his friends sounding like a barbershop quartet

"What's he doing?" Ryan asked watching a man drudge out of the van, his long straight black hair accompanied by a headset with a small microphone attached, a small set of round glasses perched atop his nose, his back sloped over slightly.

"Is that the horseman?" Archer asked watching the man look over his bus' tires

"No, that isn't the wavelength's owner." Faunel replied watching a nun step out of the bus

"Mom, is there really a horseman on that bus?" A young girl asked standing beside Dawn.

The girl appeared to be in her very young teen years if at that age. Her volumous hair glimmered in the sun like gold. Her young face resembled Dawn's yet differed in small noticeable ways. The most notable was that her eyes contained two fused pupils in each.

"The wavelength seems to suggest so." Dawn replied wrapping her arm around the girl and patting her shoulder.

"But who could it be?" Ian asked watching a beautiful woman with dark grey hair step out of the bus.

"Famine?" Greg questioned

"Maybe it's…" Faunel began before a hatch on the bus roof burst open and a man leaped out with great energy, landing atop the bus with a guitar clutched in his hands.

The man was very broad shouldered with his right arm covered entirely in a vast silver gauntlet. He wore a red hood which covered most of his head, his white hair falling out the sides of the hood.

"Death Weapon Meister Academy!" The man yelled out in a booming voice before tapping the chords of his instrument letting out an oddly melodious yet deafening tune, "Are you ready?!"

"Are the theatrics necessary?" Dawn asked raising a brow at the spectacle.

"He's got style…" Daniel said nodding his head

"He's an idiot." Lance replied watching the man get carried away playing his instrument.

"An idiot with style evidently." Ryan added with a small chuckle

**Soon afterwards**

"Welcome Brother." Death called out watching War and his assemblage enter the Death room

"I haven't been here for decades." War replied looking at the sky-like walls and roof, "Yet it's barely changed at all…the same can't be said for your look."

"The old mask was a bit too scary for the young ones." Death replied

"I guess that explains the voice." War nodded

"And this is another landmark." A sarcastic voice called out approaching from behind the group, "This is the closest a Black tear has gotten to Death without being killed."

"Hello Yumi." The dark grey haired woman of War's group replied without batting an eye to the woman behind her

"You should be honored." Yumi added walking past the group, her glasses pushed high up her nose giving off an air of pretentiousness enhanced by her suit.

**On the Road**

"I don't get it, what's a black tear?" The young girl Bella asked drudging with the others through the sand covered terrain.

"It's difficult to describe." Blackbeard replied, the large pack on his back clanking as he walked, the sand pushing through his toe-bones, "You know about Arachne right?"

"Yeah, Broda told me about her." The dark skinned Brody replied, "She's the witch that created the first demon-weapons right?"

"Ay, that's her." Blackbeard replied, "But before she made the Demon-weapons she had another project. It created a small army of monstrous humans, the most notable side affect of their 'condition' was that they had black tears, thus the name. They were all insane and killed off by the horsemen, but one survived, only one. For some reason the horseman War had mercy and allowed for that one to survive… And that one is Heather, the wife of War. "

**Death Room**

"Yumi, calm down." Death called out as the woman stood by his side crossing her arms

"Who else has arrived?" War asked interrupting the argument

"Veritas has." Death replied simply, "Famine and Blackbeard will be here within the week, and Thor will be here in another two weeks, he's busy training Fergus' men."

"Ah, good, good!" War said in his hearty voice, "Now, the trip was quite extensive, are our rooms ready?"

"Yes, Yumi will show you." Death gestured towards the woman who let out a sigh before slowly walking off.

"Follow me…" Yumi groaned walking from the room

"You go on, I need to discuss something with my brother…" War said nodding his head up, his comrades leaving, "So tell me what happened with this whole Blakes situation…"

"So word does spread quickly…" Death said turning to his mirror, "Yes both he and his meister are missing…along with our witch prisoner."

"Do you think they freed the witch?" War asked

"No, I've known them both for years, they would never." Death replied, "But I would be lying if I said I didn't think they were connected."

"What do you suppose happened?" War asked

"I'm not entirely sure…" Death began, "But I don't feel we've heard the end of it…"

**Elsewhere**

"Merrily sings the clock." The woman's voice carried on as she was dragged through the darkness, "It's time for work, it's time for play. So it sings throughout the day."

"Does she ever stop?" Eric asked drudging forth through the hallway, small indents in the wall filled with skulls and burnt candles

"She will." Brian replied pulling the woman forth by a black leather belt wrapped around her wrists, several other black belts binding her arms together.

"Tick-tock, tick-tock, Merrily sings the clock." Rebecca added smiling vacantly, the black hood over her eyes still allowing her empty stare to be felt.

"What does it even mean?" Eric asked glancing back

"I'm not sure." Brian replied, "It's just madness."

"Tick-tock, tick-tock, Merrily sings the clock." Rebecca added

"Leave it to a shibushen to bring up madness." Eric sighed

"If I cared about being a shibushen anymore I wouldn't be teaming up with a witch." Brian retorted.

"I guess we are similar." Eric grinned, "You're no longer a shibushen, and I might as well no longer be a witch. There's no way I'm ever returning to the witches realm."

"That's what we all are." An eerie deep voice called out as the three reached the end of the hall leading into a large open room, the only piece in the room being a large dining table with a few beings seated at it.

"We're the ones bright enough to lift the veil." Another voice cackled, Brian's eyes flaring upon seeing its owner, "We're the ones that broke the rose colored glass. We are the Sheppards, not the sheep."

"No…" a familiar voice replied from the opposite end of the table, it's owners blonde hair coming into view of Eric, "We all have different reasons for doing what we do. I will not lie and claim I am some veil destroying prophet. I merely wish to return the earth to the state it should be in."

"Fowl witch insults!" A large figure with a stretching beak-like extension from its face called out from behind the cacklers chair.

"Huxwhukw quiet." The deep voice calmly spoke lifting its arm, its hand formed of some horrendous swirling black smoke, "Judai, Luna, whatever your reasons, you are here now…Eric, Brian, the same applies to you two, I couldn't care less why you decided to aid us, the simple fact is that you have joined us."

"He has a point." Judai cackled shifting sideways, resting his knee over his chairs armrest, "After all, Mister Eric so graciously did as we requested. And Brian's much smarter than we gave him credit for, choosing to join rather than fight."

"Indeed, your conversion was unexpected." The deep voice began as Rebecca fell to her knees and began laughing hysterically

"The man in the moon is the engineer." Rebecca managed to say in her laughter, "hurry or you'll miss the train… Tick-tock"

"I won't lie." Brian called out looking sternly at the table, its feeling of madness stronger than anything Brian had felt, "I'm a survivor. I did this knowing that by doing so Rebecca and I will survive this war."

"Clever boy." The deep voice said

"We do need some humans left." Luna said looking at the boy, her eyes giving off a much different feeling than the others, "You would be a fine choice."

"I'm glad to hear we have your trust." Eric grinned glancing at Brian from the corner of his eyes

"Like I would ever trust anyone." Judai laughed, "I trust you as much as I trust bird beak here or the whore of Babylon over there."

"Watch your tongue." Luna snapped

"Oh boo hoo." Judai mocked the witch

"You know, that mouth of yours is going to get you into trouble." Luna said, her voice clearly agitated

"Leave it to a woman to get offended by everything." Judai rolled his eyes

"He's just a primordial stew of everything horrible isn't he…?" Brian asked in a whisper to Eric.

"Have something to say Gor ?" Judai asked turning his head to Brian

"Gor ?" Eric repeated confused

"Here's how this works G^bba." Judai said looking at Brian, his eyes menacing and unsettling, "Gw3ilo, your job is to keep your filthy mouth shut like a good little piggy. You're being blessed with a chance to stay alive, if you step one of your filthy h ole toes out of line I'll cut off your genitals and shove them down your throat."

"I'm going to assume those words I don't understand are insults." Brian said rolling his eyes

"The basis for human stupidity is assumption." Judai quickly and proudly called out, "If you don't understand something or something isn't the way you like it, you assume. Isn't it lovely? 'Oh human nature isn't bad, there's just bad people in it' right? You're all idiots, rather than accept that your race is horrible, you want to give excuses. Did you know that as long as you monsters have lived you've had slaves, in areas where people don't even know there are other colors or tribes? It's part of your human nature, you're lazy and you want others to do what you should. But now if you listen people love to say bullsh!t about how racism was made to justify slavery…oh I love hearing that one, reminds me so much of that core of assumption. You humans are so set on finding some false base to justify why people do what they do, you just never want to accept it…you humans are the true monsters."

"You really love the sound of your voice don't you?" Eric said disgusted

"Everyone has the right to hear my genius." Judai replied with a large grin, "You humans are such stupid creatures. You run a society where the true smart ones are silenced and the idiots are allowed to speak. As long as the stupid can justify doing what they want, nothing will change."

"And there came one of the seven and talked with me." Rebecca suddenly said, "Saying unto me, come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters."

Judai smiled as he adjusted himself, the large spot of blood on the side of his pants letting a small drop fall to the ground.

"With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk." Rebecca added, her head looking straight forth at where Judai sat, "It's a simple passage that many misunderstand…"

Brian looked at the woman confused, hearing words which didn't seem mindless or out of place entirely.

"…It doesn't mean a great whore will lay with the leaders of this world…" Rebecca continued, "It means a shameless monster will spread its ideas, blinding the people and creating a new world of vice…pride…wrath…greed….doubt…."

Eric's eyes slowly drifted from Rebecca to Judai who sat smiling a large self satisfied grin as he propped his legs onto the table.

"The whore is more than what it sounds like." Rebecca finished, "A connection of vice, sin, and doubt…a train of evil…the man in the moon is the engineer… tick-tock don't be late for the train …"

**Chapter 15-The Pirate v. The Reaper?**

**Three Weeks until Assault**

**DWMA**

"Alright everyone listen up." War called out looking over the gathering of students around a raised circular platform beside a raised platform with four chairs atop it, "I understand all of you have been training under the guidance of your respective teachers…"

War continued giving a quick glance to Maka who stood behind her spartoi and Perseus who stood behind the Queen Anne's Revenge students.

"But now we need to see just how you all handle yourselves." War continued with a grin showing from underneath his hood, along with what appeared to be the bottom of sunglasses, "So we're going to have ourselves a little tourney."

Brody nodded his head with a wide grin as he tapped fists with Duncan. Ryan sighed, placing his hand over his face at the thought.

"I discussed the idea with your teachers earlier and we have established a bracket as follows…." As War said this he unraveled a large parchment revealing a tournament bracket

"Well then…" Lance said raising one of his brows, "This is going to be interesting."

"Let's not waste time here!" War yelled out as Death, Veritas, and Blackbeard sat down in the chairs beside the platform, "Round one! From the shibushen we will have Ryan and weapon Ian against the Queen Anne's Duncan!"

"You got this bro." Brody said adjusting his knit soft beanie while pushing Duncan forth from his back

"We can handle this." Ian said walking forth

"I'm still not sure how us fighting will solve anything." Ryan sighed walking forth through the applause of the gathering

"Most of your human traditions are confusing." Dawn replied as Ryan walked up the platform

"Mom, I don't think any species appreciates you calling them by their species name." A teenager standing beside Dawn retorted, the girl looking much like Dawn aside from her fused pupils and sharp teeth.

"Rather be called human than boy in fairness." Taijus said nudging the girl

"So is that the witch?" Bella whispered leaning close to her comrades

"I think so." Domashi, the large man wearing a mask, replied, "She fits the description."

"I can't believe they didn't just accept her but they also made her a spartoi…" Bella whispered back

"A bro is a bro by any other name." Brody retorted, "Being a bro is on the inside, not the outside."

"Alright!" War called out slapping his hand against his gauntlet, the fingers shifting open for a moment revealing nothing underneath the metal, "Whenever the competitors are ready….not really, hurry up and get to fighting…"

"Do you have a weapon?" Ryan asked as Ian transformed into his sword form

"I am a weapon." Duncan replied, no sarcasm or pride in his voice, rather he said it as though it was simple fact.

"…fifty bucks on the blonde." A monk standing behind the empty chair on the raised platform whispered to Death the kid who stood behind Death's chair.

"…Eighty…nice round even number…you're on." Kid whispered back in reply

"Let's go!" War yelled out to the crowd

**Elsewhere**

"Brian, their numbers are rising pretty steadily…" Eric said in a hushed voice as he pressed on the wooden door to assure its lock, "Are you sure it can be handled?"

"I'm positive." Brian nodded without looking back at the witch, his focus on what was before him

"Just be honest with me…" Eric said walking forth behind Brian, "Are we going to survive all of this."

"You, yes…me…maybe…" Brian replied nonchalantly, "But that isn't my concern, we had a deal."

"Well, none of us are dead and she isn't a monster…" Eric replied gesturing to Rebecca who was on the floor, her head mostly covered in a black hood which tightly bound her eyes, "So I'd say the deal is being met."

"The deal is met when you and her make it out of this war alive." Brian replied loosening the buckles which bound the woman's arms

"You humans and your remorse." Eric shook his head, "You just can't accept that she's gone."

"Somewhere inside this thing is Rebecca." Brian retorted sliding off the bindings, "You can say what you want, but if you had the chance to save your brother, I know you would have."

"That's the only reason I'm helping you." Eric nodded looking at the insane woman who sat on the ground oblivious to the world around her, trapped in her own mind, "She isn't your family, but the care you've shown reminds me of a family."

"We humans have a term for what you're describing." Brian replied meekly, "Love."

"Humans can't experience true love…" Eric began just as meekly, "…but I must admit…you're very talented at mimicking it…"

"You just can't drag yourself to admit humans aren't as bad as you've been taught." Brian half laughed as he slid a white straight jacket over the woman

"You kill us witches all the time." Eric retorted watching Brian pull out the tattered clothing through the jacket, "I think we're justified in doubting your kind."

"I have to admit it, but maybe we have killed too much of each other's kind." Brian replied clipping the jacket into place, "But we can stop it, we can fix it."

"Us? Two rejects and a madwoman?" Eric chuckled, "We sound like the title of a bad movie."

"I'm pretty sure 'fruitarian pacifist' and 'radical Jew' also sound like bad titles." Brian replied, "But they changed the world didn't they?"

**DWMA**

Ryan leapt forth swinging his blade around quickly with a one handed style. Duncan quickly turned left and right dodging the attack before one swipe shot through the air straight for him. The boy suddenly shot up his arm and blocked the blade, making the sound of a loud clang.

"I wasn't being cute when I said it." Duncan smiled as he lowered his arm, revealing his forearm to have turned into a rounded silver surface, "I really am a weapon…well…sort of."

"Interesting." Ryan raised a brow before his sword's handle grew up its blade, and the blade began curling, quickly turning into its scythe mode.

Ryan quickly spun the weapon around with dexterity, Duncan ducking within inches of being hit. Ryan quickly flung the scythe about in a wide figure eight. Duncan smiled as he began glowing. Within milliseconds before being struck, Duncan morphed into a sharp oval shaped shield with two large spikes on either end. Ryan struck the shield only to have his scythe bounce off.

Duncan suddenly leapt forth, turning back into human, and latching onto Ryan's torso. Ryan fell to the ground as his opponent began squeezing hard, his hands and legs fusing into their silver shield handles, constricting Ryan tighter and righter.

"He's made a mistake." A strange voice suddenly spoke up from Blackbeard's group of students.

Lance turned quickly at the sound of the odd new voice to see a figure he hadn't noticed. The oddest part of the figure was that it didn't feel new, it felt as though it had been present, but that it was so meek no one paid any mind to it.

It was an average height figure wearing a tan jacket with white fake fur around the wrists and the collar which was lifted up. Underneath the jacket was a thin black hoodie which covered the figures head and shaded its face. The hands of the figure tightly tucked into its pocket.

"What do you mean Eddie?" Domashi asked watching Duncan constrict tighter and tighter, slowly turning into his shield form

"Just watch." The figure, Eddie, replied. His 's' dragging just a moment too long making it uncomfortable and snake like.

Ryan struggled for a moment adjusting himself in the vice grip. The scythe in his hand slowly began changing shape, its crimson blade beginning to stretch into a large circular shape. The moment the scythe finished transforming into its ring blade form, Ryan smiled.

Duncan looked with confusion as Ryan suddenly threw the blade into the air. Oddly enough, the blade flattened out in the air and fell down over the two, encircling both Duncan and Ryan within it.

"Ready?" Ryan asked with a growing grin

"For?' Duncan asked

"Well…" Ryan gasped with all the air he could muster, "We haven't come up with a clever name for it yet. But…I was thinking of something along the lines of 'Conductor Convulse'!"

With the shouting of the intended name, Ryan's wavelength grew massively. The crowd watched as a blue wall formed along the Ring blade, entrapping Ryan and Duncan in the tube-like prison for a moment. Then to everyone's surprise Ryan threw off an enormous wavelength, just for a moment a pair of aura wings visible sprouting from him. Duncan let out a loud scream before falling off of Ryan and sliding down from the tube as it disappeared.

"Long explanation short…" Ryan began as Ian transformed back human, "Ian makes a barrier, I unleash a wavelength which bounces around magnified in the closed quarters, and you go night-night."

"Told you." Eddie said simply

"Well, not half bad for round one match one!" War called out clapping

"…damn…" The monk behind the empty chair groaned

"Well, looks like you have some training abilities after all." Perseus said with an abundance of sarcasm directed at Maka

"I wonder if I'll ever be able to say the same about you…" Maka muttered back with quick wit

"Alright, alright, someone get the body off the stage." War said nudging Duncan's body with his foot, two paramedics with a stretcher running forth, "Who's up next?...looks like…Derrick and Darryl from the DWMA will be up against…Eddie."

"Try to go easy." Bella said turning to the hooded boy who had been all but invisible to everyone, even now being directly addressed the boy still seemed as though he was part of the backdrop to Lance, it was a very unsettling feeling.

"Big D! You got this!" Daniel said patting his comrade on the shoulder

"Big D shows no mercy! Big D goes with full force!" The tanned oriental teenager known as Derrick replied

"I've told you that you're all idiots, right?" Dawn sighed placing her hand over her face

"Don't worry, it's implied." Darryl, Derrick's twin, nodded as he grabbed his brother by the ear and dragged him to the stage.

"Ah, here we go." Blackbeard said with joy, "I'm quite excited to see how Eddie handles himself here."

"Your top student?" Heather asked leaning on the empty chair

"Quite possibly." Blackbeard replied, his jaw making a small tapping sound as it opened and shut, "I'm pretty sure you can find his name in the dictionary as a synonym for Diversity."

"What makes you say that?" Heather asked watching the hooded boy stand across from the twins on the stage

"I'm not sure how else you would describe him." Blackbeard replied as the excess cloth of the hooded boy's cloth belt began swishing behind him, "Let's see, he's the adopted son of a female vampire and a female human Arab, he was trained by a dead pirate, and he's a reptoid… overall I don't think you could make up a more diverse being."

Derrick and Darryl both looked down quite taken aback to see a slender pointed scale covered appendage fall from the cloth.

"Is that…?" Derrick began

"A tail…?" Darryl added

"Don't act like it's the first one you've seen." Eddie replied looking up revealing a scarf wrapped around his mouth and nose, the small bit of flesh showing around his eyes being a dark colored collection of small scales.

"A Reptoid?" Dawn asked watching the smooth tail of the boy swish back and forth

"What's a reptoid?" Ryan asked watching the boy take his hands out of his pockets, revealing his ring finger to be longer than his other fingers, not to mention his hands and fingers being covered in green scales.

"An Ancient race of beings, not that many left at that." Dawn replied looking at the boy rise on his toes, "They're best known for having an exceptional soul guard, it's so effective that you can look straight at one and not even pay any attention to it, it's a great camouflage….in fact, that's how some of the surface dwelling Reptoids get into human politics…"

"Well go on…" Eddie said as he stood in position, his legs spread about shoulder length apart, his knees bent slightly, and both of his arms up, elbows bent, with fists slightly above and in front of his shoulders, "Feel free to make the first move."

Derrick and Darryl turned to each other with odd looks before immediately throwing forth their hands, lifting them and lowering them three times whilst chanting 'ro-sham-bo'. After which Darryl sighed and Derrick transformed into a slender gun which looked much like a musket, yet only slightly more advanced.

"I won't get salmonella if I hit you right?" Darryl asked grabbing the riffle

"Not if you wash your hands, no." Eddie replied kindly

"Okay good…" Darryl nodded before taking a wide swing with the butt of the gun.

Eddie quickly squatted down, dodging the attack, before swinging both of his elbows up in a wide arc. The Reptoid didn't stop there and quickly spun around, one of his elbows striking the boy in the face. Eddie spun twice more striking his elbows harshly across Darryl's face. As Darryl staggered back, Eddie wrapped his leg behind the boy's knees and forced the boy down hard onto the ground.

"…sh!t…" lance said looking wide eyed at the scene

"Does this count as being over, or do I need to give him a good kick?" Eddie asked looking up at War

"Well, he looks like he's out cold…let's go ahead and call this one…" War replied nudging Darryl with his foot.

"I hope that wasn't your star pupil Maka." Perseus laughed as Eddie walked back to the group, "Because that took all of four seconds."

"Let's see…" War said looking at his brackets, "Dawn and Mary from the Shibushen will now face Domashi!"

**Elsewhere**

"...And wheels of stars." Eric repeated looking down at the piece of paper in his hand

"What's that supposed to mean?" Brian asked, "Are the wheels a metaphor, are the stars a metaphor, or is it all just insane babbling?"

"I'm starting to think we're the insane ones here." Eric sighed glancing back at Rebecca who was seated in the corner of the room, her straight jacket bending her, "I understand that the real Rebecca may be in there, but you also have to remember that there's a thick layer of insanity."

"But think about it, all of her insane ramblings seem to connect." Brian replied connecting words together on his pad of paper

"After all, whores have so much to do with trains and clocks." Eric replied allowing his face to fall onto his paper

"Yeah…valid point…" Brian nodded, "…But I know if we keep looking we'll find something."

"…well…it's not like we have anything else we could be doing." Eric replied rolling his eyes, "After all there's only a world ending war coming…"

**DWMA**

Daniel took a wide swing with his flail, his female opponent quickly spun through the air in a twirling spear-like motion. The girl suddenly transformed into a large rectangle of black fabric which wrapped around Daniel, entangling him as though it were an anaconda.

The boy struggled, doing his best to move yet he found himself immobile. As he struggled, the girl transformed back into her human form, her leg wrapped around his neck. She quickly brought him down to the ground, lifted her foot up high and stomped down on his collarbone with force.

"And that's the end of round one!" War called out watching Bella lift her foot from Daniel's neck, "Let's go ahead and take a fiver before round two."

"Daniel are you okay?" Taijus asked transforming back into his human form Daniel huffing on the floor, unable to move a muscle

"I'm fine…" Daniel groaned closing his eyes

"Don't worry, I didn't break anything." Bella said resting her hands on her hips as she leaned over the boy, "…well…maybe his masculine pride…"

"I've come to terms with who I am…" Daniel groaned in reply

"That was incredible…" Taijus said looking up at Bella, "And you're just a weapon? No Meister?"

"Yup." Bella replied with a smile helping Taijus to his feet, "That's what Blackbeard does, he trains you to the best of your physical abilities. War trains his pupils in using their soul's aura as a weapon, and Death trains his students in resonation. We all have our own separate style."

"That's incredible." Taijus said glancing back at Blackbeard who appeared to be laughing.

"So how are the bones holding up?" War asked as he sat down in his chair, his comrades still standing behind it

"Better than Death's, that's for sure." Blackbeard replied tightening the wire in his left wrist which seemed to be dangling freely, "And how about your arm?"

"It's lasted me this long, it won't quit anytime soon." War replied opening and closing his gauntlet hand

"How long has it been since you lost your right arm?" Death asked

"I don't know…" War replied thinking, "When did the last dinosaur die?"

"I just don't get why Lance got a by." Archer sighed gesturing towards Lance

"Hey, don't get angry at me because you lost to Dude Brodia over there." Lance retorted

"I thought you wanted to fight?" Faunel poked her head out over Lance's shoulder

"Yeah, but at least this way I know my opponent will be strong." Lance replied slowly swishing his short spear through the air.

"But it's also going to be a girl…" Faunel replied, "You know that right?"

"Hey, she kicked Daniel's a…" Lance began

"I was going easy!" Daniel's faint yell could be heard

"Whatever, point is she can fight." Lance continued, "Although honestly…I'd like to get a shot at Eddie lizard over there…"

"I don't even know why we need to keep going…" Duncan sighed, "We all know Eddie's just going to win this thing anyway."

"We don't know that for sure." Bella retorted nudging Duncan with her elbow

"We know he'll make the finals for sure." Brody enthusiastically interrupted, "The question is, who will he fight? My money is on me!"

"You know you're up against the witch next round." Domashi spoke up, "Do you think you can handle the whole mind invasion thing?"

"Master Broda has trained me well." Brody retorted with a roll of his neck, "My mind is a tranquil brocean that can be a brodigious broment wall."

"Is the use of bro really that necessary?" Bella asked

"…well...at least he's broffesional…" Eddie suddenly spoke in a meek voice

**Elsewhere**

"Hey d!ckbutts, get out here!" Judai's voice yelled out with a loud thud on Brian's door

"At least he's creative with the insults." Eric sighed as he looked back at the door

"Come on, the less we have to hear him the better." Brian groaned approaching the door, opening it slowly.

"Good point." Eric replied as he followed Brian out of the room, closing the door behind him, the door slowly closing.

As the muffled voices of Eric, Brian, and Judai began moving down the hall, the woman sitting in the corner of the now empty room rose to her feet.

"I know you're there." Rebecca said as her straight jacket sleeves suddenly loosened and her arms fell down

"How are you doing that?" Luna asked as she appeared in the midst of the room

"When one breaks the walls the universe sets on them, the influx of information makes it difficult to communicate" Rebecca asked turning her head to Luna despite her eyes still being covered.

"What happened?" Luna asked amazed

"When one soul is destined for another there's a certain uniformity to those two souls that is distinct no matter the case." Rebecca replied with a wide grin, "You should know, your daughter has the scent of destiny on her."

"I know my daughter has a destiny, but I've never been quite certain of what." Luna replied calmly sitting down

"Not what, who." Rebecca replied crossing her legs as she sat on the desk beside her, "Her and I are similar, we are both destined for another…"

"Destined souls? True love?" Luna said amazed

"Yes, that's it." Rebecca nodded with her wide grin, "In every universe, in every possible outcome, she has always been with a certain soul and created a certain other."

"She is destined to always fall in love with one and have a child?" Luna asked

"Taijus' destiny is to fall in love with Dawn, and her destiny is to birth a child." Rebecca replied

"But that doesn't answer how you know this…" Luna began

"I am similar to her, in every universe I am destined to be with Brian." Rebecca interrupted, "Although I have yet to read what it is we do, it is destined none the less."

"Read?" Luna repeated

"Some call him Thoth, some call him Metatron." Rebecca replied with a wide grin, "….what makes up our world is simply our reality, we cannot know something more real, our minds simply cannot handle it. Say you were chained in a cave only able to see shadows all your life before you escaped, the notion of a three dimensional object would be unrealistic, even though to another it seems matter of fact….If someone, like me, had just a glimpse into the manuscript of the divine regarding space and time and destiny, we would be seen as crazy, we would be seen as blind even though we have never seen clearer….Many say that it may not be in the human terms of a manuscript, but some great divine being has some form of path, a past, a present, and a future all in it…maybe even with alternate endings in it as well….

When Judai tried to shatter my mind, he did something no one could have expected….he allowed an opening….because I am a being with a destined path in every version of this story, he allowed me to see the letters so to say…he allowed me to see the outline….sure the rough details may change, but I caught a glimpse of the other version, and of this version…the beginning…the middle…and the end…

You may ask how he did so. The answer is simple…he too has a destiny…they all do…You humans often misinterpret prophecies, because you always want a clear answer, you always want a simple idea…but it never is that simple….The Whore of Babylon is the beginning of the end…you humans want to think of the end as a quick event, but it isn't, from beginning to completion, it takes millions of human years. But human minds are so finite they cannot even begin to understand it….

To the average human, magic is ridiculous….To the average human fairies are ridiculous. Many times they will say, enjoy the garden as it is, why search for fairies? Stories and legend are just that, stories and legend, blah blah, the knight does this, the knight rescues that, it's all so much marvelous lunacy, right?

Do you want to know just how ridiculous the chances of us existing is? The best human guess puts it around ten to the power of ten to the power of ten to the power of one hundred and twenty three. Think about that number for a moment...there's a better chance of a hurricane going through a junk yard and creating a working Boeing 747 than there is of this universe even existing, much less humans.

It's staggering that you humans leap to such extravagant ideas and excuses. You can't look simply and say 'what happened?'…the fact is we're all part of someone's story. What part you play is distinct, don't underestimate it….

Some call him Metatron…some call him Thoth…I call him a much simpler name…but the fact is plain…He writes our universe, he makes it so we do what we do…Judai gave me a chance to see…he is the Whore of Babylon…him…Legion…you…Azazel….Although it is merely the first collection of atoms which will eventually lead to the bang, it has begun…maybe not soon, but the end is indeed coming…My role is either over or just begun, the real question is…what is your role?"

**Chapter 16- Has the time come?**

"I don't fully understand…our world is false?" Luna asked

"Our world is as real as we understand." Rebecca replied, "To some greater being we may be considered less than fully real, but we are indeed living creations given life by some creator."

"And this is the beginning of the end of the world?" Luna questioned

"Time is a relevant idea, but yes." Rebecca nodded

"And you know all of this because you're destined to love Brian and Judai broke some great multi-dimensional barrier in your head…" Luna muttered

"I don't know why this is so hard for you to understand." Rebecca replied as though she was reciting the most basic information.

"I can understand destiny and a great plan for us all…" Luna began, "but as to a madwoman being the one to see it all…"

"Your daughter has no father, she was formed solely from your essence." Rebecca replied, "Years from now she will give birth to a daughter she will name Luna…after you of course."

"Is that supposed to make me believe you?" Luna asked

"Believe me or not, you're the only one that's been able to hear me." Rebecca replied

"What?" Luna said confused

"You're the only one to hear my words and comprehend them…" Rebecca repeated, "You can't tell…but I am not speaking the words you are hearing…I'm in fact speaking entirely in mad phrases…the reason you understand me is because you're reading my mind, not listening to my words…"

**DWMA**

"…It was impressive, I'll give him that much." Blackbeard nodded watching Lance leap off the stage placing his spear in its holder on his back

"He is rather good at manipulating his wavelength." Heather replied looking at the boy oddly, his wavelength feeling different than the others

"You got lucky Maka." Perseus laughed crossing his arms, "At least one of your students made it…makes sense seeing as he's as old as a teacher."

"You just had a lucky break." Maka replied with a huff

"Alright this is taking forever, let's wrap this up." War called out tapping his fingers across his gauntlet, "We're going to have a three way free for all for our finals; Brody, Eddie, and Lance get up here."

"Well lance, you're our last hope." Ryan sighed patting lance on the shoulder

"…he wouldn't be if I wasn't sucker punched…" Dawn mumbled under her breath

"Just don't make us look like chumps." Daniel groaned pushing Lance towards the stage

"Don't worry, I'll make sure he doesn't." Faunel replied trotting up behind Lance

"The bropponent won't know what hit him." Brody said excitedly stretching his arms, "ready bromigo?"

"…I guess so…" Eddie replied meekly walking forth with small footsteps

"This should be easy." Bella said watching the two move to the stage

"Should be, but knowing the DWMA…it won't." Duncan replied

"Alright you should all know the rules by now." War said rolling his hand as though to speed up the process, "Let's go."

"Love the enthusiasm…" Lance muttered lifting himself onto the stage

"Alright bro, let's do…" Brody began as he lifted his fist up

"I'm not your bro, dude." Lance retorted smacking away Brody's hand

"I'm not your dude, bro." Brody replied insulted

"…aren't you supposed to fight?" Faunel asked standing beside the stage

"I think we are, but this is Brody." Eddie replied sitting down at the edge of the stage beside Faunel, "If he doesn't preface the fight with a speech he can't operate to his best."

"Just curious, what is a Reptoid doing training under Blackbeard?" Faunel asked leaning on the stage watching Brody try to tap fists with lance who continued to slap them away

"What's a fawn doing training under Death?" Eddie asked watching Brody and Lance began to slap each other's hands away from each other

"Meh, used to be an enslaved prisoner, got rescued, decided to join…" Faunel shrugged, "That whole chestnut. You?"

"My moms said I was destined for greatness, and they figured the best place to achieve it was under Blackbeard's training." Eddie replied watching Brody and Lance holding their heads back, continuing their slap war

"Why not War, Death, Pestilence, or Famine?" Faunel asked brushing the fur on her face down

"Well neither of my moms really wanted me to be trained by the man who killed ninety percent of the gnome population, so war was out." Eddie began, "They didn't want me living above an entrapped monster, so the DWMA was out. And seeing as I'm a reptoid, they didn't trust Pestilence to not throw me underground. And last of all famine…"

Just as Eddie began his next sentence, Lance threw forth a punch which struck Brody directly in the nose, causing the boy to struggle backwards.

"…that's my cue…" Eddie replied slowly rising to his feet

"Ah, by brose…" Brody groaned holding his nose as he staggered back

Eddie leapt forth through the air, Lance quickly and fluidly pulled out his spear and held it to Eddie's throat. Lance's eyes took on a very serious look as he held the blade's tip to Eddie's scarf, the reptoid slowly lifting his hands up.

Suddenly Eddie slapped the spear away from his throat. Lance spun the blade around, the shaft just under the spear head striking Brody off his feet before lance tried to strike Eddie. Eddie quickly threw forth his elbow at Lance, yet Lance ducked back to avoid it.

Eddie made no delay in correcting himself into his stance, Lance rolling his wrist and feeling the weight of his weapon, Brody struggling to his feet still holding his nose.

"Faunel, I need you to be my eyes." Lance said keeping his eyes on Eddie

Eddie quickly spun around with a swing of his elbow, Lance blocked the attack with his forearm before Eddie threw down his foot. Lance moved back just a tad before launching his knee forth. Eddie quickly blocked the knee with his own knee before Lance swung around his spear.

"His jacket restricts his pullback." Faunel said watching Eddie's jacket tug at his elbow as he ducked down

Lance smirked as he swung his spear yet again, Eddie moved back, yet as he did Lance flicked his wrist, shifting his spear and smacking Eddie in the shoulder hard. Eddie stumbled back giving Lance the chance to spin around and give a very large kick into the chest of Brody who had been holding his nose, now finding himself off the stage on the ground.

"So she's more than just company for you?" Eddie asked dusting himself off

"She's my partner." Lance replied flicking his wrist and his spear

"I know you have more skill than you're showing." Eddie said sliding his thick tan jacket off and setting it on the floor, "So here's how we're going to do it…"

Lance raised a brow as Eddie slowly began sliding his arms out of his thin black hoodie.

"Let's not waste time building up to the fight, why not start where we should?" Eddie asked tossing his hoodie on the ground revealing his hairless head, smooth and covered with scales along with a few quill like spikes, "I just took off the two major means of heat I have, my body temperature will begin to cool down, so that means I have to fight to the best of my abilities if I want to defeat you and get warm again. Now I'm going to come at you, if you want to win, you should resonate."

Lance looked at the reptoid in a bit of confusion, his long sleeved shirt showing two large holes in its shoulders which had spiked scales protruding with grey diamond patterns.

"…Lance…now might be a good time to resonate." Faunel called out with a bit of a panicked look on her face, "I know you can't feel his wavelength, but take my word, we need to resonate!"

"Alright…I trust you…" Lance replied with a smirk as he threw his foot back, kicking the climbing Brody back off the stage, "Let's go! Soul Resonation!"

Lance held his spear over his shoulder, his wavelength beginning to grow. Blackbeard watched intrigued as Lance's spear began changing, morphing into its larger alternate. War nodded his head as though encouraging as he rubbed his chin, interested by the spectacle.

"So, you think you're ready?" Lance asked throwing his resonated spear forth, the tip pointing at Eddie as though it wanted to shoot forth

"I guess we'll find out." Eddie replied throwing his shoulders up, his scarf's ends fluttering behind him and hanging in the air much like wings.

Eddie sprang into the air and threw forth a large kick, lance blocked the attack with his spear before throwing a swing of his own. Eddie used his strength to push off the spear and strike the ground for a moment before flying back into the air with a wide axe kick which Lance barely managed to avoid. Lance turned his head shocked to see Eddie's heel had broken through the stage, yet his other foot was free, Eddie used this foot to kick Lance directly in the chest and launch him backwards.

"I told you go full force…" Eddie said standing up, the two tails of his scarf in the air as though they were being held up.

"…Faunel…" Lance groaned rising to his feet, "…We're going to level two…"

"But we haven't practiced that…" Faunel began as she looked at Lance

"It's okay, let's give it a try." Lance replied holding his long spear out by his side, "Soul Resonation go!"

Faunel made no argument and nodded her head, her wavelength beginning to grow. As her wavelength increased, her horns began growing, gnarling as they did so. Lance stood up tall, his power beginning to surge much like a boiling pot over pouring.

Eddie watched intrigued as blue aura began swirling around Lance. The aura began as an orb around the boy, yet it soon began coming together, forming odd plates around him before shooting forth attaching to him.

"Holy f…" War began before Heather gave him a light smack on the shoulder

"Alright Death, I'm fairly impressed…" Blackbeard said as the plates formed armor over Lance's arms, chest, and legs, along with a large shield forming on his left wrist.

"No wonder…" Veritas spoke up as Lance's spear grew even longer, "He's resonating with a Fawn…that has to have different results than normal resonation."

"But how is he resonating with a Fawn?" War asked, "No human can do that…"

"I think we're seeing proof otherwise." Heather retorted as Lance's grin grew into a wide smile

"Ready for round two?" Lance asked holding his long lance-like spear out

"From the looks of it, it's going to be next hit takes it." Eddie called out throwing himself into position

"You would think so." Lance replied holding his weapon out in front of him

"I won't go down easy." Eddie called out

"Neither will I." Lance retorted.

**Chapter 17- Edifice?**

**Sixteen Hours until Assault-DWMA Apartments**

"Polaris, no one wants to tell you about what's going to happen." Dawn began in a calm voice which still allowed just a bit of panic to show.

The witch hardly looked like she ever had, in fact she looked more human than the average student. Even at her current state, seated wearing nothing except for a buttoned oversized flannel shirt which covered her to her mid thigh, she still retained beauty and tranquility to her.

"I don't know why, I'm old enough to handle it." The girl sitting across from Dawn replied.

This girl, Polaris was not as lucky as Dawn and still clearly showed her lack of humanity. Her fused pupils, sharp pointed tongue, triangular teeth, and her skin being just a tad too flawless all gave proof to her non human origin. She looked in age about the same as dawn despite being more than a decade younger. Unlike Dawn, she wore no clothes, which only added to her inhuman nature as she had no naval, no genitals, no teat; she was bare as her skin was merely a nicety to make others feel comfortable. Polaris was not a human, not a girl, not a witch, it was a creature Dawn had the kindness to care for, to take in as her own.

"Because we all love you." Dawn replied taking Polaris' hand in her own, the creatures lack of fingernails being one unsettling missed detail, "Before we leave tomorrow, it's required that all of us write a will and last testament."

"But why? Don't they trust you guys to be back?" Polaris asked confused, her human-like eyes showing the very human emotion of worry

"They just don't want us to leave our loved ones behind without letting them know why." Dawn replied keeping her head down, "And for the first time in…well…my life, I have loved ones I don't want to leave…"

"Mom what are you…?" Polaris began

"I'm a witch…You know that, they all know that." Dawn replied, her voice shaking as though she was forcing the words through her lips, "We aren't creatures of creation like humans….We don't want to build structures, or communities. We don't care to have families. The only time witches have children is when they create them from their own flesh and soul. Infant witches are meant to carry on the legacies of their parent, nothing more…..I've done something very few witches have ever done…I have a true family….I know this isn't exactly the picture perfect one that everyone wants: A teenage witch, a teenage human, and an unknown creature less than a year old…but I love it…with all my heart I love it and I want to keep it…"

Polaris sat speechless as she could see small droplets of her mother's tears begin to sprinkle downwards to the floor. The tears struck the floor and gave a small splash, sparkling in the faint light.

"That's why I will be going tomorrow." Dawn continued as she wiped her tears onto her sleeve, "Humans have so much bad within them, but they have so much…so much…good. The idea of a true family is lost on many species, mine sadly included, but it's them I fight for. So that the ones that know family can keep it, and the ones that don't can find it…"

"…M-mom..." Polaris managed to mutter, her voice trembling, her body slightly shaking as her eyes began to water up, her tears a light red leaving a trail down her pale face as they crawled across her skin.

Dawn said no words, she simply outstretched her arms and brought her daughter in close for an embrace. To others they were monsters, a witch and an abomination, but to each other they were family. A mother and a daughter, nothing more, nothing less.

**DWMA-Chapel**

"אנא תנחה אותנו ולהגן עלינו" Eddie carried on kneeling in one of the pews with his head rocking slightly back and forth

"Was that some Reptoid language?" A teenage girl asked upon hearing Eddie finish.

She was an interesting girl, her dress finely made and clearly expensive, Her extremely long hair was tied in a braid running down her back. It was none other than the Princess Elinor, however Eddie was not very familiar with random royalty and did not know who she was.

"Sort of…it was Hebrew…" Eddie replied in a meek voice, "How did you know I was here? Most people look past me."

"As royalty I've been taught not to do that." Elinor replied sitting down beside Eddie, "It could lead to death."

"Very interesting." Eddie nodded

"So you're Jewish?" Elinor asked looking at Eddie's face, his mouth and nose well covered by his scarf, his head mostly covered by his hood

"I'm not the most devout…but yes." Eddie replied, "My moms are both Jewish and they raised be to be also."

"Mom-s?" Elinor repeated

"I was adopted, yes." Eddie replied simply, "One is a vampire and one is a human."

"That's quite an interesting background." Elinor half laughed, "But still, if you're Jewish why are you in a Christian chapel?"

"It's quiet and devoted to God." Eddie replied, "People tend to forget Christians, Muslims, and the Jewish all pray to the same God. We just argue on some of the other stuff."

"But don't the humans…us…bother you?" Elinor asked, "I mean, aren't we the reason Reptoids had to move underground…and aren't we the reason Jews…well..."

"To err is human, to forgive is divine." Eddie responded simply, "Bad things happen all the time, circumstances force people to do things they shouldn't. It happens. We can't dwell on the past if we want to move forward, we learn from mistakes and keep onward."

Elinor was quite satisfied with this answer and seemed to have enough. The girl politely thanked the Reptoid for his company and made her way to the exit. She looked back one last time at the Reptoid, curious as to how he ended up where he did, before she opened the door and headed out. She made it all of eight inches before she stumbled into someone and nearly took herself and the stranger to the ground.

"Woah there." The man said as he caught Elinor and helped her back to balance

"My apolo…" Elinor began with a quick brush of her hair before her eyes met with her savior: Archer.

The two said nothing for what seemed like forever, their eyes locked and seemingly refusing to move. There was an unspoken connection, as though the two souls were perfect pieces to complete the other and for just a moment both felt a completion they had never felt before. The two felt what very few do, true destined love.

**Elsewhere**

A sickly wet snapping filled the stagnant air. Two footsteps followed afterwards as a dribbling began filling the air. Speckles of the potent liquid splattered across the ground tainting the air with its stench.

"I'm a man that enjoys the finer things in life." The footstep owner's voice began, a man on the floor of the room, his knees bent in complete inverse.

"Ou a tychopa." The man tried to speak, trails of blood running down his mouth, his gums void of teeth

"Yeah, that's what they want you to say." The standing man replied dropping the large red empty container he had held onto the ground, "They call me a sadist, a rapist, a pyromaniac. Just nasty words to describe simply things, good things actually."

"Montha!" The toothless cripple called out

"Again with the names, sticks and stones, you know?" The man replied squatting down and shaking his fist, a rattling audible from inside, "Hear that? Those are your teeth making that noise. Doesn't it sound so odd? You can rattle dice, rocks, or beans in your hand but none really capture that special sound. You have to enjoy the little things. Now where was I? Oh right…You see, sadist have a bad history, but I never understood why…"

As this man carried on he slowly pulled forth a lighter from his dusty pant pocket. His forearm covered with round pieces of glimmering silver which seemed infused in his flesh.

"You see, Sadist are just people that help others appreciate life. How does the saying go? 'Without pain you would never know pleasure'? We're just nice like that, we want people to really understand the value of life." He carried on lifting a small stick, its end drenched in the liquid, "Now rapist, that's a hurtful word. The simple fact is that before you humans came up with all this 'love' nonsense, there was no single breeding. The Spartans, they were some people that knew how it worked. If you could overpower the woman, the prize was yours, but if she overpowered you, well, sucks to be you. Now your women are so damn soft, so are your men, you idiots hate to say it, but your men are abused as much as your women. It's pathetic."

Continuing his speech the man lit the sticks tip, the flame slowly yet consistently undulating at its peak.

"Now last of all is pyromaniac." The man said with a sickly smile, "You humans want so much, you want technology, you want love, you want comfort. All I want is a quality burn. A simple pleasure. Now here I am giving you an option…open up buddy…"

As the monster continued, he put the non lit side of the stick in his victim's mouth.

"Tomorrow may very well be the end of the world." The monster said forcing the toothless jaw shut on the stick, "And you're in incredible pain, drenched in gasoline and kerosene and a hell of a lot of great flammables heheh…If you drop that flame you'll have a slow death indeed, but you may also get me, hey that's good, right? Now, you drop that and you kill yourself slow, and may kill me, and even better you won't be around to experience all the hell on earth and such. Personally I think it would be a missed opportunity, but what are you going to do? So, what's it going to be bud? Light yourself or try to survive? All your call."

**Elsewhere**

"It's tomorrow…" Eric said concerned as he looked back at Brian who buckled Rebecca's hood on so that it could not slip past her eyes, "There's no more time to wait or plan, we have what we have, we have to go off of it."

"I'm well aware." Brian replied keeping his eyes on Rebecca

"I hear the train…" Rebecca muttered

"Do you really think that you can hurt your fellow humans?" Eric asked watching Brian, the man practically gone in a world of his own

"I'll do my best to limit it." Brian replied holding his forehead to Rebecca's, "But I will do what I need to, make no mistake."

"Do you really think they'll see it the same way you do?" Eric asked crossing his arms, "Sure what you do may end up saving ten times more than the amount it leads to dying, but do you think people care about that? All they'll see is that you led to their friends and families dying. Just how much is a human life worth to you?"

"Human lives don't come with a price tag." Brian replied keeping his face hidden, the twin trails of dried tears across his cheeks, "That's why in the end I much rather die than do what I'm going to…but dying won't solve it, eventually someone has to make a stand. If you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything."

**DWMA-Next Day**

"Today we do what must be done."

Dawn looked at herself in the mirror as she buttoned up her white blouse, her eyes set and determined. She knew what task laid before her, she knew that she was going to do what no witch had ever truly done.

"Since the dawn of time we've had to fight, it never gets easier, it shouldn't."

Lance slowly buckled the strap of his holster, firm yet not restricting. Faunel slowly wrapped her arms over his shoulders, her face clearly riffled with panic and fear. Lance simply gave her a comforting smile as he rested his hand on her hoof. They both feared what was coming, but they both knew it was important.

"The moment taking the life of something, anything, becomes easy, is the day your soul has begun to corrode."

Eddie gave a small smile as he glanced down at a picture of his mothers. It reminded him of what he fought for, what all species know in some form or another, it reminded him of love. As he wrapped his scarf around his mouth and nose he closed his eyes giving a small prayer for protection.

"We have all gone through much, lost blood, tears, sweat, loved ones, unloved ones. That's what makes this all worthwhile."

War taped on his heavy gauntlet, a shallow thud resonating before a soft hand rested on his shoulder. Heather gave her husband a comforting smile as he rested his hand on her hip. The two had been in countless battles and were quite ready for another.

"If you don't have that, it doesn't mean anything, you don't deserve the victory. It is what makes the road, the path to victory. What we have over them."

Liz slowly set her hat on her head glancing back at Kid who adjusted his suit, making sure it was perfectly even. A million thoughts raced through both heads, yet they did their best to keep calm. Even Liz who knew she would not be going on the mission for a reason she had yet to tell everyone, a reason she shared with Maka.

"People worry that humanity is what prohibits survival. They're wrong. What we need is what humanity centers around. We need Hope."

Ryan lowered his hooded head, resting his forehead on Mary's shoulder. He was beyond panic, his heart racing, his skull aching. He knew he had to be strong, as did Mary. But as is the problem with most humans, simply knowing something is not always easy.

"We have what they don't. We fight for something greater. We fight for each other."

Archer exchanged a small smile with Elinor as she passed in front of him. His shoulder briefly tapped Greg who walked alongside him. Both wore new dark clothing with a very distinct symbol showing: Spartoi.

"And in the end…"

Blackbeard ran his bony fingers over his good chibi friends heads as he moved forth. Despite her feelings of hurt, Veritas allowed for her hands to meet his as they approached each other. Her slit eyes stared into his empty eye sockets, for just a moment an image of the fleshed Edward Teach appearing to her.

"That's just what we need to win this."

**Elsewhere**

"They cower behind their false security."

Brian slowly aided Rebecca to her feet, slowly bringing her face to his to allow their foreheads to connect for a moment. Giving the man just a moment to remind himself as to why he does what he does.

"They hide in their filth. They justify their sins. They are dogs in need of discipline."

Eric sighed as he shaved his face looking into a mirror. He stood staring at his reflection, reflecting on who he truly was. His eye was still, the pentalpha inside calm, much like the wind before a great storm.

"They do it all in the name of false idols. They do it all for lust. For Greed. For pride."

Luna wiped her eyes, clearing any hint of tears or sweat. She slowly lifted her witch's hat and rested it atop her head, her brow slowly tilting as she gained her confidence and turned her stare to a scowl.

"They need correcting, much like a bad herd, they need thinning. It is time for us to fix their wrongs."

Judai laughed as he spun around the pile of ashes. Huxwhukw and Amanojaku stood away from the man as he kicked the ashes into clouds and danced about in an unusual burst of joyful energy, the bones underneath his feet cracking as he stepped on them.

"We will punish the evil and deliver the good. We will purge this world."

Legion slowly walked forth, his red trimmed black robe fluttering in the wind, his green glowing eyes set on the two great horns protruding from the being in front of him.

"People fear because they imagine, and imagination is merely the power if all the emotions combined."

Azazel looked over the great cliff, the wind buzzing past him, his scowl looking onward in disgust.

"People imagine things because they do not understand them. It's far more terrifying imagining a future that provides pain. It is not that people are afraid to die. They are scared to imagine…death"

A being cowered on the ground, his fingers trembling in his mouth as though he may bite them off at any moment, his eyes bound and covered by an odd black fabric, unclipped buckles fluttering behind his head. Three white vertical eyes on its face.

"The truth cannot be held by clinging to order coated with rhetoric and lies. Covering up what is inconvenient and ignoring the real issues will not hide the rips in the skin. Their false peace is anything but noble and we will end it."

**Chapter 18- Who?**

"…causing widespread panic with everyone wondering, who is next?" The radio buzzed and spoke, "…This Is Amanda Sharpe reporting, I will be keeping you updated as the situation develops."

"Are you really ready?" Daniel asked adjusting his cap, the light rain dribbling over its brim, "I couldn't sleep a wink last night."

"I don't think any of us did." Taijus replied, a drop of the rain running down his nose, "And the news doesn't exactly do anything to calm things down."

"They knew when to attack because Brian betrayed us." Ian said annoyed looking over the gathered crowd; umbrellas, ponchos, and hats covering their heads shielding the rain.

"If he really wanted to kill us, why didn't they attack Death City?" Mary asked, her dark cap's brim protruding from her hood.

"They don't just want to kill us." Dawn replied, her hook handled personal parasol allowing the rain to gently tap a consistent rhythm, "They want us to feel useless, they want us to feel like we're incapable of protecting the ones we want to, just killing us when we didn't expect them would be too easy."

"Just like us, they have something to fight for." Lance said, his round sunglasses covering his eyes, his large umbrella covering himself and Faunel, "It may be insane and horrible, but it's what they believe in nonetheless."

"Everyone!" Death yelled out in a booming voice as he slowly approached from in front of the large group.

"We have all of their locations." War added in his booming yell as he walked up behind Death

"To be more precise we have five enormous sources of madness we've traced." Famine added walking up aside Death, his small wooden cane tapping on the floor repeatedly.

"To remind you all, I cannot leave Death City." Death called out, "Neither Maka nor Liz will be able to go, so they along with Soul will be staying behind to protect the city along my side."

"So we will be splitting into five groups." War called out, "Each group will go to one of the locations to fight."

"If you feel you are overwhelmed you are to merely stall until reinforcements arrive." Famine added, "Don't fool yourself, these are powerful creatures, and there's no telling just how powerful they may actually be."

"I do not deny evil, nor do I believe that any human is completely free of malice. Everything must be in balance. As long as evil and good maintain an equilibrium in this world there is no problem. Perfect balance is the key to everything." Death called out looking over his students, his brothers, his allies, one last time, "A sound soul…dwells within a sound mind…and a sound body."

**A few Hours later-Group 1**

"Who knew that my first time in Japan would be so I could fight a demon?" Ryan asked looking out the plane's cabin window

"Well no matter what happens you at least get to say you saw it before you died." Mary replied with a small smile, an entirely true smile which made it all the more unsettling for her.

"And you didn't have to sit next to Daniel the whole way…" Taijus sighed glancing at Daniel who was tied up with duct tape over his mouth fast asleep,

"It's amazing that the world is ending yet you still joke." Dawn said looking blankly at the group causing an uncomfortable silence.

"…so…" Ian suddenly spoke up breaking the silence, "What happens when two snails get into a fight?"

"What…?" Lance replied confused

"They SLUG it out." Ian responded with a self satisfied smile. Ryan immediately slapping his hand over his face, Lance looking with disdain at the boy, Faunel raising a brow confused. Then out of the awkwardness, Dawn gave a small chuckle which slowly grew into a laugh, the others joining in to enjoy the laugh, perhaps the last they would have.

**Group 2**

"Everything we've been through and I'm still nervous, crazy isn't it?" Tsubaki asked with an uncomfortably forced laugh

"I'd be worried if you weren't nervous." Kid replied resting his head back on his seats backing

"Hah! When you're by the side of someone as big as me you have nothing to be nervous about!" Black Star yelled out grabbing a hold of his bicep

"When you're a witch about to fight a demon you have everything to be nervous about." Kim suddenly piped up, her voice shaking slightly with anticipation and fear.

"You're one of us, you shouldn't worry." Ox Ford called out, "We've been through a lot and we can get through this. We're all shibushen, we stick together."

"Always." Kid nodded with a comforting smile.

**Group 3**

"May the Bro protect and defend us." Brody called out, the wooden cabin his group found themselves in shaking and rocking, "May the Bro protect you from fear. Favor them."

"Do you really think some mystical Bro force is going to protect us?" Bella asked clinging to a large wooden barrel

"How is asking an unseen force to protect us any different than 99.9 percent of all religions." Brody asked.

"It's just a tad absurd to ask for help from the 'bro' is all I'm saying…" Bella sighed

"You want to talk absurd? The Greeks believed their gods were at the top of a very climbable mountain, yet no one dared to check." Brody retorted, "It isn't about how logical or illogical it may sound, it's about the principles held, it's about faith. If I'm a good person, who are you to try and shatter my faith because I have it and you don't?"

"He makes a point." Eddie meekly muttered, "Faith without reason is blind, but reason without faith is dreary. If someone's good, let them be, don't worry about their faith or lack thereof."

"Whatever the case, pray to your personal god or lack thereof." Duncan said slowly opening the creaking wooden door revealing the vast sea beyond them , "Because we're getting close."

**Group 4**

"For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy _to be compared_ with the glory which shall be revealed to us." A hooded monk read from a small leather-bound book, his second hand clinging to an overhanging safety rail

"Romans 8…" The nun sitting beside another monk muttered

"The Sancto Collar is in good shape." Heather said examining an extravagant rosary-like necklace around War's neck

"Well it's going to go through a major stress test today." War smirked, his sunglasses glimmering as he pulled up his guitar and ran his hand across its chords.

"Ey las thing 'e need 's a'nother bloody mass 'tinction." Oswald called out from the front of the vehicle, one hand on a large wheel, the other on a metal stick protruding from the ground with a small eight-ball atop it.

"Pfft I haven't done that in years" War retorted

"Oh? What about the…" Heather began as she pressed her hands down ion her hips

"They had it coming!" War interrupted

"I didn't say what it was yet…" Heather replied with half open eyes of displeasure.

"Oh I'm sorry honey, go ahead and finish." War corrected himself

"…the snozzwa…" Heather began again

"Had it coming!" War yelled out

"Aren't you guys the least bit worried?" The nun asked poking her head up, her large round eyes bordering on the absurdly adorable.

"Bah 'ts a bloody battle n't h'ving a d'mn chil!" Oswald yelled back laughing to himself

"Ey! Tu eres un vato de este Madre de pu…" War began yelling back

"Not saying it in English doesn't make it okay." Heather said slapping War on the shoulder, "Sister Ashley, we've been through so many battles with so many different opponents, this is just another job to get done."

"So it doesn't worry you at all?" Sister Ashley asked, her large round eyes twitching slightly as though agitated by the air

"Well a little bit, who knows, we may trip and get hurt." Heather replied, "But fighting isn't a concern at all. I think War's more cautious about scratching his guitar than he is about fighting."

**Group 5**

"Calm down…" Famine spoke up resting his hands on his cane as he looked at his son who sat looking down at the coach cabin floor, the entire cabin shaking about and rattling, the sound of horses trotting outside filling the air.

"What do you…?" Famine the Kid began

"I wasn't born a millennia ago, I can see how uneasy you are." Famine replied taking a quick bite out of a large sub sandwich, its ingredients nearly outpouring.

"It's just the thought of fighting an actual demon…" Famine the Kid replied looking up at his father who was wiping his mouth, his large sandwich gone.

"You remember all the stories I used to tell you and your friends when you were little." Famine began with a smile stretching across his wrinkled face, "I've fought a demon before, I entrapped it in a blade which I kept with me by my side for the longest time."

"Yes I remember the stories." Kid Famine replied, "You said that your biggest opponent was yourself, that demons thrive on doubt and insecurity to weaken their opponents."

"Exactly." Famine said, the cabin taking a large shake which shifted the two around, "That still holds true. No doubt. No fear. Now, eat something, it will calm you down."

As famine said this he out held a large silver platter with several steaming cooked fish atop it along with several glasses of water. Famine the kid glanced down at the thick flat pieces of bread beside the fish, his stomach rumbling slightly.

"Well go on, you already missed second lunch." Famine said sipping pulling forth a large pear, "If you miss this meal you won't have any energy for the fight."

"What about Thor's men, are they well fed?" Famine the Kid asked grabbing the platter, "They need to be ready to fight as well."

"They've been fed, but they didn't eat much." Famine replied pulling forth an enormous turkey leg, steaming and filling the cabin with the smell of its cooked flesh, "Only a few boars, a few turkeys, a few chicken, and one cow."

"Huh…maybe they're nervous too." Famine the Kid said nodding his head as he lowered the now empty platter beside him

"You should have seen how little Veritas ate." Famine half laughed, "I don't think it was even half a goose."

"Amunet has the same problem." Famine the kid replied setting down the bare skeleton of a turkey on the pile of bones and cores beside Famine, "She'll barely eat anything and claim she's full."

"I wonder when they actually eat." Famine pondered as he set the large bare bone he held down, "It isn't good to eat a lot at once, one should eat a little bit every hour or so."

"Well, let them do what they want." Famine the kid nodded popping open a large gallon tub of ice cream, "…Dad…do you really think eating a snack is the best way to prepare for a battle with a demon?"

"Of course it is." Famine replied, "don't make yourself worry, be at ease, I guarantee by being at ease, being well rested, and being well fed you'll catch that demon off guard ten times better than anyone else would."

**Group 1- Japan**

"Alright so a pirate walks into a bar with one of those ship steering wheels on the front of his pants." Lance began with a wide grin on his face, his fellow Spartoi all laughing, "So the bartender asks him, 'Hey, doesn't that wheel bug you?' to which the pirate replies, 'Aye it's driving me nu…"

"Stop." Dawn suddenly piped up

"Aw come on, it's funny." Lance retorted laughing to himself

"No, that's not what I mean…" Dawn replied before she shot her hands up to her head, clenching in pain.

"What is that?!" Faunel yelled out, Lance turning to see her covering her head as well

"What's going on?!" Lance yelled out leaping to his feet; Taijus, Faunel, and Dawn all clenching their heads.

"Ahh!" Ryan yelled suddenly as he felt it as well, a horrendous wave of insanity which felt like a vice tightening on the boys skull.

Lance watched in horror as shibushen after shibushen began aching and groaning in pain. Ian shot his head up looking around him at the groaning shibushen, his weak soul perception saving him from the agony, but not the fear as the plane began shaking and trembling.

"We're getting close!" Ian yelled out, the rising insanity starting to become more and more obvious, his skin tingling as though the air pressure was increasing.

"Why the hell are we shaking so much?!" Lance yelled out walking down the walkway towards the pilots cabin.

"Well, Well, Well…" A deep reverberating voice suddenly said, Lance slowly baking away from the cockpit door

"No…" Ian said in shock rising up

"I do believe I found my assassin." The deep voice said, the cockpit door slowly opening revealing its owner, "So…should I fear for my life?"

Lance and Ian looked in horror at the being that stood before them. It was a tall lean yet muscular figure composed of swirling black aura, two red glowing eyes in its head. The shibushen couldn't help but have their eyes look upwards at the twin gnarled horns of the being which complimented the goat like hooves of its feet. Last of all a serpent like tail swung around its ankles, its tip torn into two.

"What are you?" Lance asked half in shock, looking at the large blood splatter over the inside of the cockpit, the pulp which used to be the pilots

"I'm Azazel." The beast replied laughing to himself in his deep voice, Ian looking with worry at his fellow shibushen; Dawn now bleeding from her nose and Faunel now screaming in agony.

"I will kill you." Lance said sternly as Azazel rested his slender fingers on the steel of the plane body

"I look forward to seeing you try." Azazel replied with a malicious grin before he brought his hand down quickly, his fingers ripping through the steel as though it were paper. Lance grabbed a hold of the seats quickly as the entire head of the plane separated from its body, wind rushing in as Azazel calmly stepped out, disappearing in a blink.

"What do we do?!" Ian yelled out trying to make his voice heard through the rushing wind which hurt his ears and made it difficult to breath properly.

"I don't know!" lance yelled back running to Faunel who was quite dreary and having difficulty keeping balance on her seat.

"When I got on this plane you guys promised exactly this wouldn't happen!" Daniel yelled out thrashing about in pure panic

"We need to stay calm!" Ryan called out rising to his feet as the planes oxygen bags fell down around him, "Now think!"

"We can't operate the plane without the cockpit!" Archer yelled out strapping the mask around his face, "And the Demon just so happen to have ripped it off!"

"Dawn can you make a shield?!" Lance asked as he strapped the oxygen mask over Faunel, the shape not quite fitting as it should, yet functioning

"She's out cold!" Greg yelled back slipping an oxygen mask around Dawn's unconscious face.

"Permission to freak out!?" Daniel yelled out

"Yes!" Ian yelled back

"No!" Lance quickly corrected him, "Ryan! It's your lucky day!"

"What?!" Ryan asked trying to keep his hood over his head, the wind rushing in

"You're a grigori!" Lance yelled back, "We're losing altitude really quick! We need you to slow us down!"

"But…!" Ryan began

"No time to argue!" Lance quickly interrupted, "You're our only hope! Now go!"

Ryan wasted no time in arguing and quickly shook his head in a nod before reaching out for Ian. Ian sighed as he grabbed hands with his partner, transforming into his scythe mode before Ryan began walking down the aisle.

"Ryan!" Mary suddenly yelled out grabbing Ryan by the shoulder

"I know, I love you too!" Ryan yelled out turning to her quickly grabbing her by the shoulders and giving her a large kiss before she managed to kindly push him away

"…No…I meant if I go too we can resonate even more, increasing your strength…" Mary finished

"…oh…" Ryan said embarrassed, "Yeah…makes sense…"

"Damn it Ryan, I'll kiss you myself if we f^cking survive! Get out there!" lance yelled out.

Ryan nodded as he grabbed Mary's hand, the girl quickly transforming into her candle mode. Ryan took in one last breath from an overhanging mask before he took a dive out of the plane.

At first the rushing air and the quickly approaching ground seemed rather exciting and calming for the boy. His hood flapped in the air as he closed his eyes to begin resonating. At first Ryan and Ian resonated, the soul wavelengths bouncing off each other increasing greatly.

Protruding from the back of Ryan's hips was a set of light blue tribal pattern-like wings of aura. Ryan grabbed a hold of the front of the plane, doing his best to lift it. His muscles began pulling as hard as they could, bringing pain to the boy as his wings began flapping as hard as they could.

Ryan let out a yell as he began resonating with Mary as well. At first the new resonation countered the previous wavelength creating a very calming effect before the frequencies combined and increased a hundred fold. The small blue wings on Ryan's hips suddenly exploded into massive purple wings of aura. Ryan's eyes began glowing a deep purple, the swirling pattern on his hoodie glowing as well as he yelled out, pulling on the plane.

"No way…" Lance said in awe as the Plane began evening out, Ryan pulling the end upwards.

Ryan yelled out as he lifted the broken plane, his great wings flapping intensely. Archer, Greg, Faunel, Daniel, all of the shibushen watched in shock as the plane began tilting the opposite way. Ryan slowly lifted the end of the plane, the decent slowing down tremendously.

"Ryan you're doing it!" Mary yelled out, her bare reflection glimmering in the candleholder attached to the back of Ryan's hand by a tangle of purple aura.

"I'm greater than I thought!" Ryan yelled back as the plane began slowing down even further, Ryan now at its top holding it vertically.

"You did it!" Ian yelled out ecstatically as the plane stopped entirely

"Well done…well done…" lance applauded strapped into his chair

"How…much…further?" Ryan groaned, trickles of blood slowly falling through his knuckles, the steel of the plane digging into his fingers

"About three hundred feet…" Ian replied, Ryan's eyes shooting downwards to see just how close to the ground they were.

**Group 2**

"This is where it was located?" Black Star asked looking at the large abandoned castle, "There's no way a demon is in there."

"It's definitely in there." Kid said straightening his jacket, "I can feel it, it's horrible."

"Is it a demon?" Liz asked turning to Kid.

"No." A voice called out as a figure slowly made its way through the castle's door, the wavelength of insanity increasing to near tidal capacity.

"No, it can't be!" Crona yelled out in fear as his eyes widened looking at the figure approaching.

"It can be and it is." The voice replied, three long tendril like stretches of linen fluttering behind its back.

"No!" Kid yelled out grabbing a hold of his two partners which quickly transformed into large shinning handguns, their barrels stretching and glimmering as kid unleashed a barrage of enormous bullets.

"Is this all you can muster?" The figure asked as the dust around him settled, the entire front door of the castle gone, the bricks around it turned into dust.

"Tsubaki!" Black Star yelled out quickly grabbing his partner's hand, the woman transforming into a large razor sharp star which was immediately tossed at the being.

"You just can't manage the thought of it." The being said, the large star digging into his shoulder blade as he stepped into the light revealing his appearance.

The being was tall with his head wrapped in several black belts, three long belts fluttering behind him with their unclipped buckles rattling. Across his barren face rested three vertical white eye-like patterns just above an open gap which had several murky teeth grinning.

"I am back." The being said throwing the star on the ground, the metal weapon quickly transforming back into the woman who crawled back as fast as she could, "Asura is back!"

**Group 3**

"What's going on?!" Blackbeard yelled out flinging open his wretched wooden door, his bones clacking as they struck the wooden deck of his boat

"The shore!" Ben yelled back, his barren skeleton pointing to the land only a few dozen yards away from the large ship

"No way!" Bella gasped as she and the students all rushed to the side of the ship looking at the enormous black cloud stretching from the land to the sky all across the shore

"What happened?" Duncan asked looking at the large charred splinters of wood striking the shore repeatedly due to the tide's force.

"Ben…" Blackbeard said straightening his tricorn, his small friends Lock and Flint clinging to his legs as though he would protect them.

"I think it's one of them." Ben replied handing his captain a bronze spyglass, "I can feel his wavelength.

"Look." Blackbeard replied lifting his finger bones revealing a small violent ripple of a light blue field around his bones looking much like the skin that should be present, "My bones are supported by the aura of my soul just like yours."

"Aye captain." Ben nodded looking at his bare bones, no ripples

"But unlike your soul, mine is much more sensitive to madness." Blackbeard carried on, a ripple spanning his face allowing for his human face to become visible in aura for just a moment, "Something on that island is outpouring madness."

"Do you suppose…?" Ben began

"Look out!" Eddie yelled out quickly turning and throwing his arms out, taking down several of his comrades before an enormous flaming mass collided into the stern of the ship, cracking off a huge chunk of the wood and leaving a small trail of fire as the mass skidded across the deck.

"What the bloody hell?!" Blackbeard yelled out looking down to see the mass was a human corpse which had been set aflame

"Captain!" Ben yelled out just before another flaming corpse crashed hard into the ships mast, the flames beginning to spread out over the cloth sails.

"Who's shooting us?!" Brody asked in panic as he sprang to his feet looking at the shore

"Here comes another one!" Bella yelled out as she tried to help Duncan to his feet

"I've had enough of this!" Blackbeard yelled out as the flaming mass suddenly exploded into a pulp which showered the deck, his students all turning to see his right finger bones wrapped around a long flintlock pistol, his left finger bones wrapped around a shorter flintlock.

"Captain what do we do?" Ben asked with a gesture towards the spreading flames

"You act as though we've never been in a ship on fire before." Blackbeard replied calmly as he took a swift step forward, his long jacket fluttering behind him, "We get this ship as close to the shore as possible, she's going down anyway, the less wet we have to get, the better."

"Blackbeard!" Eddie yelled out suddenly as a figure shot down from the sky with such force and magnitude a dome shaped shield of air began forming around it before it struck straight through the center of the ship, cracking it into several shards.

"Everyone grab a hold of something!" Eddie yelled out as he sprang to the surface of the water clinging to an enormous piece of what was once the deck

"Kya haha." A wicked laugh filled the air as the beast that had sunk the boat rose into the air from the water, a large bird like monster with an enormous beak and great wings stretching about, "A sea rat is no match for a kingfisher."

"What is that thing?" Domashi asked as he rose to the water's surface

"Who cares what it is?!" Bella yelled out tossing her head, moving the wet hair from her eyes, "It sank us!"

"Bella! Domashi" Eddie called out as he slid off his wet hoodie, "make sure everyone is okay. I'll take care of the bird."

"Small lizards are a delicacy amongst the aviaries" The beast chuckled, its wooden helm allowing its two peering red eyes to show through, water dripping off of its enormous taloned feet.

"And birds are a treat to certain tarantula. Why should I fear something that gets eaten by bugs?" Eddie asked as his scarf tails began fluttering over his shoulders, "Bugs are a snack we give to our children."

"Am I supposed to fear you bug breath?" The flying beast known as Huxwhukw asked

"Your mind is too primitive to comprehend fear." Eddie replied pulling his scarf down from his nose revealing his rounded snout-like nose and mouth, as he spoke his small sharp teeth showed through along with his blue forked tongue, "But you should know I am something you should avoid."

"Enough talk!" The beast roared back before shooting through the air at Eddie.

Eddie quickly leapt onto his piece of floating shrapnel and threw himself into the air. The long ends of his scarf began to glow with a light glowing aura appearing as wings for a moment which flapped with strength, pulling the reptoid into the air. The beast struck Eddie, the boy wasted no time in digging his long finger claws into the beast along with his teeth.

"…I'm fine!" Brody yelled out as Bella tried to help him keep afloat, "What struck us?"

"I'm not sure." Bella replied looking back at Eddie and the beast which shot down into the water before shooting back into the air

"Bah!" Blackbeard suddenly yelled out as his two arms shot out of the water holding his flintlocks up high, "It's damn hard to keep vertical when you have no flesh!"

"We need to get to shore captain!" Ben called out pushing his large chunk of wood through the water, "I'm sure Eddie can handle birdbrain"

"What do you mean?" Duncan asked looking up to see Eddie jab his claw into the beast's eye, "Isn't that the demon?"

"No." Blackbeard replied simply as he lifted himself atop Ben's makeshift raft, "That thing is just a normal kishin, maybe a bit stronger, but no way is that the cause of the wavelength."

"Then what is?!" Domashi asked annoyed before a small metallic clink caught the groups attention, everyone's eyes turning to a silver coin which had been dropped on a floating piece of the ship.

"Good question." A pompous voice replied as a squatting shadow overcast the group from above.

Blackbeard turned slowly to see a collection of beings that could make his heart sink had he still owned one. There standing atop a floating mass of swirling blue aura was four beings. Squatting at the edge of the mass digging his filth covered nails into the air was a surprisingly well groomed man wearing a tight black shirt, his forearms covered in silver pieces, his face covered with a wide grin.

Behind the man stood Brian and Eric, both looking down at the group in disappointment and surprise. And last of all, the one forming the floating mass, holding a small crystal ball was none other than the witch Luna.

**Group 4**

"…Uhh…'ou mig' wont ta see t'is." Oswald said with a raised brow as he looked back down the aisle of the van at War.

"Oh just run it over!" War growled back without stopping his song

"I d'nt min' doin' t'at bu'…" Oswald replied

"What is it?" Heather asked making her way down the aisle before she saw what Oswald did, "Oh God…"

"Hey, lord's name woman!" War yelled at Heather as the bus began to slow down drastically

"Never mind that, you might want to see this…" Heather retorted as Sister Ashley and Brother Gabriel both joined her side looking out the back of the bus

"Ugh, what's so God damn important?" War sighed as he walked to the front, the bus tilting with his weight, "…Well then…"

As War reached the front of the bus he found the road blocked by a wall of twenty men standing side by side. Some of the men wore black masks with a white number imprinted on its front, the others wore a black hooded jacket with a red trim, their glowing eyes peering through their shaded face, each with a different glowing color.

"We are many!" The group yelled in unison

"This it?" War asked rolling his shoulder

"Yeah Demon members and a Demon." Heather replied reaching for her toes to stretch

"We go flank or we go wall?" War asked opening and closing his gauntlet fingers

"Well 'e coul' jus' go straig' on an' kill 'em all 'n one swoop." Oswald replied turning the bus into park

"That works too." War shrugged as the army of foes began marching forward

"Uhm…what are we going to do about the army approaching us?" Sister Ashley asked confused

"Just follow our lead." Heather replied with a kind smile as War outstretched both of his hands, one grabbing Oswald by the wrist, the other grabbing Heather by the hand.

"Don't worry." War said with a smile as Oswald began glowing and changing shape slowly transforming into a double barrel shotgun with an extravagant scope atop it; Heather's skin turning a pale blue, her clothes slowly enveloped by a black liquid which began encompassing her body before changing shape, the woman now a short thick blade. "This isn't my first rodeo."

As War said this he leapt through the bus' front window, the glass shattering and spreading through the air as he landed atop two of the foes, crushing them. War took a wide swing slicing down the front wall of the foes before he unleashed a barrage of shots from his weapon taking down the second, the battle beginning.

**Group 5**

"Our people say many things." Elinor began as she looked down, "Strength, Bravery, Courage. We love repeating those words for some reason."

As Elinor carried on she dropped a large steel helmet from her hands, a trail of blood running down its front, her cheek cut.

"We like to believe that the most important thing in life is not showing fear." Elinor continued as she tightened her grip on what she held, her helmet to the side of her.

"But to be honest, fear is normal, fear is good even." Elinor continued as the thick beard of the corpse she held began covering her arm, her grip tightening, "It's what lets you survive….But surviving isn't living."

Elinor looked up to see Famine leap forth onto the chest of an enormous lanky beast, as he touched it, it began shriveling until it turned into a bare husk of bones and flesh.

"So should we fear?" Elinor asked dropping her head close to the corpses head, "Yes. But never too much. We were put on this earth to serve a purpose, mere survival is a waste."

"Is…that why…you did it..?" The corpse asked with a sudden breath, its deep voice gagging on its own blood.

"I disguised myself because I felt I could help." Elinor replied, a tear crawling down her cheek, "I didn't know they would ambush us."

"Just…promise me…" Fergus, the dying king, proclaimed as he kept his eyes on his daughter, Veritas splitting a beast in two behind them, "You…won't…die…"

"I won't." Elinor cried as she held her father tight, the battle around her spouting blood into the air much like a grotesque mist of rain, the battle was merely beginning.

**Chapter 19- Why?**

"The people who follow their heart and continue on their path even when it's difficult are a special type of people." Death said staring into his mirror, Maka and Liz standing behind him, "But the true question is why do they do it?"

Maka stared into the mirror watching the figures inside of it rushing forth into battle, the battle which could very well decide the fate of the world.

"I was never a fan of the phrase 'I'm entitled to my own opinion', it's an excuse, a sort of threat. It implies that if you argue further than you're a monster trying to take away free will." Death continued as a mist of a red substance sprayed all across his view before the image dissipated, "Of course that isn't true. If you feel a way you should be able to say why, you should be able to give your reason. That's part of what separates existing from living. That's why we fight madness. Madness exists for the sake of existing, for the sake of doing as one pleases with no true reasoning or purpose."

"Doesn't that imply one can do as they want as long as they justify it?" Liz asked as a new image appeared on the mirror, this time of a large field of dark figures attacking a small group which amazingly held its own

"Justification is not reason." Death replied, "You should both understand that, are you not both bearing another soul within you?"

"Yes." Both Liz and Maka replied simply

"Now is it justification or reason that makes you keep the child?" Death asked, "Do you keep the child because you feel you should or because you can discover a reason as to why you should? Reason is a purpose, part of order. Justification is an excuse, a poor hindsight explanation for why one does what they do."

"So why do you feel we shibushen continue to fight?" Maka asked, Death glancing back at her seeing her soul above a much smaller soul growing within her, "As a horsemen why don't you feel you should just let what will happen, happen? In the end you'll ride anyway, why delay it?"

"The chances…." Death began, "…of this universe existing are so slim. People often use the ratio one to one or three to five, the odds of this universe existing is one to a very large number against. If I wrote out that number in twelve point font the zeros would fill half the universe. With so much improbability, why do we exist? Why do we live, why be born to begin with? In the end we all will die, what is the purpose of being on the earth anyway? I'll give you a hint. There is no exact answer. But seeing those growing souls within both of you reminds me why I continue to fight…I do what I do for the times I see two souls together, love, friendship, companionship, family. I do what I do for two. Four-two…42…."

**Group 1**

"Is everyone okay?" Mary asked running through the grounded cabin, her companions all more than shaken up

"For the most part." Lance replied helping unclip Faunel's safety belt.

"I think my lungs are trying to come out of my eye sockets…" Daniel said lifting his dreary face from a bag, "It feels like I'm being strangled by my own intestine…"

"I can't imagine you'd ever know something that painful." Archer groaned rising to his feet

"Neither do you." Greg replied making his way off the wreckage, "I'm sure if you even poked your eye you'd be saying the same."

"Guys as great as this is, Dawn isn't doing to good!" Taijus called out lifting the unconscious Dawn out of her chair.

"She's pretty much experiencing the equivalent of getting her arm ripped off…" Faunel managed to groan as she tried to stand, only to fall back down

"Everyone who's sensitive to wavelengths just got hit by a truck." Ian called out as he entered the cabin

"No kidding." Taijus replied drudging forward with Dawn in is arms, "I feel like I'm going to pass out, but Dawn and Faunel got the worst of it all."

"I'll be fine…" Faunel muttered as she tried lifting herself, her neck loose as though she couldn't bare the weight of her own head.

"No, no you won't." lance said lowering himself to Faunel, "You can't push yourself right now, you aren't ready."

"I'll never be ready for a demons wavelength." Faunel whispered, her eyes half shut and dreary, the shibushen making their way out of the wreckage.

"Of course you will, you just weren't ready." Lance replied moving his arms underneath the fawn to pick her up

"No, you don't understand." Faunel whispered doing her best to lift herself close to Lance, "My people physically cannot handle the wavelength. It will kill me."

"What?!" Lance blurted before catching himself, watching the last of the others make their way out, "Why didn't you tell me this?!"

"Lance." Faunel replied as she ran her hand hoof gingerly across his cheek, "Every single day I spent in that trolls ownership I tried to think of ways to kill myself. You saved me and for the first time I felt like living, but I don't see the point. There will always be evil no matter how much we try to ignore it. I will gladly help defeat this demon, but it will kill me, and to be honest…that's just what I want….I want to go. I want to be in a better place, I want to be with my people in a place I won't have to fear dreams, where I won't have to fear walking in the open. I want peace."

"Such beautiful words." A deep voice said suddenly, Lance slowly looking up to see Azazel standing above the two, "If I had tear ducts I may have shed a tear there."

"You monster!" Lance growled before Azazel ran his hand over the fawn's forehead, the woman cringing in pain

"She wants to move on from this world, I am granting that wish." Azazel replied in his reverberating voice, "You are the one who wants to keep her in this torturous world."

Lance looked down at Faunel whose face was cringing in pure agonizing pain, her voice unable to express the incomparable torture she felt in ever fiber.

"My wavelength is hurting her soul, each and every nerve of her body is overloading on pain." Azazel said running his finger over the girls neck and down her chest, "Prove what you shibushen stand for, grant her her wish, save her from her pain."

Lance looked up in panic to see Azazel holding the short spear before him, offering it to Lance.

"Go on." Azazel grinned as Lance grabbed the weapon, "Save her from her pain."

Lance looked down at his comrade, the pain more than evident, for the first time he could truly remember he had no idea what would be the right thing to do. He wanted her to live, but he felt it may be selfish of him to force life upon someone who didn't want it. Yet, what if she was in a bad state of mind which clouded her judgment and she truly did want to live?

"Make a choice." Azazel half growled staring Lance in the eyes, Lance looking up for a moment before looking back down. Lance tightened his grip of the weapon and slowly brought it over his friend's chest, the tip poking at the delicate skin above where her heart lay.

"It would be selfish of me to keep her alive just because it's what I want." Lance sighed, "…I guess people are right when they call me selfish."

Lance quickly spun his blade around in a wide crescent swing which sliced Azazel from chin to brow, a large deep gash formed. As Azazel reared back, half in pain half in surprise, Lance set Faunel down and threw a large punch directly into Azazel's face.

"You are a fool." Azazel growled as he regained his proud stance, the torn flesh of his face pulling itself back together

"I can live with that." Lance retorted with a smirk as he spun around his weapon ready to fight.

"Not for much longer." Azazel hissed

As Azazel brought his arm back, preparing to strike, a splinter of aura suddenly impaled the being directly through the throat. Azazel turned enraged to see Archer standing holding his bow with another arrow nocked.

"You want him you have to get through me." Archer declared

"That can be arranged." Azazel replied adjusting himself back to his prim and proper stance, slowly pulling out the aura arrow from his throat, the hole fluctuating as he spoke.

Suddenly a large blade shot forth through Azazel's chest. The sharp tip pointed outwards at Lance, half the blade stuck in Azazel.

"Another low blow?" Azazel asked unphased by the lethal attack, Archer looking to see that the blade had been stabbed through the crashed planes metal cabin to pierce Azazel.

"You monster!" Ryan's voice called out as the sword tip began curving, transforming into a scythe.

Azazel looked at the new weapon confused for a moment before the scythe was pulled back, ripping Azazel from his spot to the cabin, pinning him.

"Interesting." Azazel said at his predicament.

"You're hopeless!" Archer called out shooting forth an arrow which pierced Azazel in the upper chest.

"Hardly." Azazel replied with a twisted smile, slowly moving one foot forward

"Stop right there!" Archer yelled pulling back a new arrow

"Why don't you make me?" Azazel replied taking another step, the scythe pulling at his skin, slowly splitting it as though it were a large chunk of raw meat.

"I said stop!" Archer yelled shooting forth an arrow.

Azazel grinned as the arrow rushed through the air, and in the mere fraction of a second it flew, his plan was fulfilled. Azazel caught the arrow, a piece of pure energy which could not be held by any normal being, and redirected it back at its caster. Archer's skill was not as great as he needed it to be. The boy tried to dive back, but as he turned his head the arrow flew through his flesh. The boy fell on the ground grasping his face, a stream of blood still falling in the air.

Azazel quickly grabbed ahold of the scythe Ryan had inserted inside his flesh. The demon was unphased by the agonizing pain he should have felt from moving the punctured item. But the demon felt no pain, he felt joy. He could feel something for the first time in decades, and it was invigorating to the monster. The beast grabbed the base of the blade and pulled the weapon clear through his body, out of the hands of Ryan.

"Nice weapon you have here." Azazel said turning back to the shredded metal of the cabin where Ryan stood in shock, "Mind if I give it a try?"

Ryan's eyes widened as Azazel pulled back the weapon. Ryan was frozen in panic, entirely unsure of what to do, a hesitance which would cost him. Azazel swung forth the blade with devilish intent. The fine sharp metal sliced through the cabin and the boy on the other side.

Azazel threw the scythe away at the falling boy as he turned back. Ryan fell to the ground, his eyes still wide open. The clothe of his jacket had only a small fine slice through it, but the growing red coloring surrounding the slice was not a good sign. As Ryan struck the ground, the crescent trail of blood he had left in the air fell down atop him and his scythe.

Ian quickly transformed back into his human form, panicking. Fear had overtaken a new victim. The fear of death, the true core of all fear, had implanted itself into Ian as he watched his friend's vital life-force spill onto the floor.

"Do you see?" Azazel asked as he slowly ran his finger across the cabins roof, as his finger slid the metal separated as though a fine blade was slicing it, "You really have no hope of defeating me."

As Azazel spoke this, the cabin slowly split open into two large halves, the view of Archer on the ground along with Ian over his friend coming into Lance's sight.

"It isn't just him fighting you!" A voice suddenly yelled out

Azazel snarled as he turned back to see Archer rising to his feet, his head tilted down to allow a steady droplet stream of blood to fall.

"You can take our blood, you can break our bones, but that isn't where we get our strength." Archer called out rising to his feet, "We resonate from one another, that's where we get our strength! Not with our muscles, but with our courage! With Bravery! With Honor!"

Archer looked up to reveal his face, his eye split cleanly in two horizontal halves, a thick substance oozing from the wound. The boy's ear cut in two, following the cuts path from his nose, through his eye, and past his ear.

"Only humans can be this stubborn." Azazel growled

"Wrong." Another voice called out, Azazel's upper lip twitching with anger as he turned once again

"Witches can too." Dawn called out as she stood holding a lit candle atop a shimmering candle holder, besides her standing Daniel with an armor madeof energy flowing from his Flail.

**Group 2**

"What's wrong with accepting madness?" The kishin Asura asked as he slowly moved forth, "The truth cannot be held by clinging to order coated with rhetoric and lies. Covering up what is inconvenient and ignoring the real issues, will not hide the rips in the skin. Is providing false peace really that noble?"

"We aren't here to provide false peace." Kid replied, his eyes taking on a serious look, "We're here to aid in The True Right, not madness."

"Right and wrong are determined by the people who hold positions of authority, that's the way it has always been so how then can anyone know this truth you speak of?" Asura replied, the fluttering ends of his straps and coverings waving away, "Don't you see that truth long ago became a shadow of itself, it's a mere echo of the past now... The world is one big moral gray area, it just makes you feel safer that it can be categorized into good and bad. That's not actually how it works."

"No." Kid retorted, "There is good and bad. The good is that which helps any and every being live. That which allows them to strive to be their best. It is that which does not accept corruption and evil for the sake of self-gain."

"So to you, good is life, interesting." Asura laughed as two of his fluttering ends slammed into the ground and held him above it, "Then how is madness not the good? It has no alternative motive, it is not meant to bring one wealth or pleasure, but true contentment with life."

"There's more to life than doing what makes oneself happy." Kid replied as he brought up his hand, his forearm covered in a large silver machine with a grand skull on its side, a cannon like weapon, "And you are just like madness, a plague on mankind. A plague on the world. You are what makes us fear instead of hope. Madness is merely corrupted bravery."

"W-what is this bravery you speak of?" Asura asked shuttering at Kid's lack of fear, only confidence in his eyes

"It isn't anything special, it resides in us all." Kid replied, "It's what allows us to overcome the madness."

"Lies!" Asura yelled as one of his tail-ends shot forth and struck Kid, sending the reaper tumbling across the ground as Asura grabbed his head, "There is no such thing!"

"Call it courage, or call it madness!" Black star yelled out as he leapt into the air with a long blade in his hand, "But it's real!"

"Get away!" Asura roared as two of his tails shot forth and struck Black Star out of the air, the blue haired meister regaining his footing on the ground and charging forth

"You can't hide from that which frightens you!" The pink haired Kim called out as she flew through the air on her lantern partner Jacqueline

"No, but I can destroy it." Asura growled as he shot forth into the air towards the woman

"You can try." Ox Ford called out as he struck Asura from the side, a golden spear in his arms

"I can!" Asura called out as his mask split open down its center revealing his face, his two eyes with a set of vertical eyes inside of their pupils, on his forehead another smaller set of eyes resided just above another even smaller set. The kishin was a monster.

The two crashed into the ground when a sudden dust cloud was released, filling the air. Kim, Kid, and Black Star all regained themselves looking at the dust cloud as it slowly settled. As it did, they found one figure standing.

"You can lie to yourself." Asura's voice called out as he appeared from the dust, his mask open revealing his monstrous face, "But you cannot defeat madness."

Kid looked at Asura's body to see a frayed wound in his side. Ox had succeeded in striking the kishin, but the cost was much greater than they realized. Kim watched in horror as Asura's tail-ends lifted a body into the air.

"Let the madness consume you." Asura said as he looked up at the struggling wrapped body of Ox Ford.

Kim's eyes filled with fear as they reflected the horrendous scene before her. The beast opened its mouth to allow a large spike to come from its throat, slowly spinning the weapon as the kishin lowered Ox Ford. Black Star ran in an attempt to save his comrade, yet ultimately the blood of Ox Ford was reflected in Kim's eyes.

**Group 3**

"Whale, whale, whale." Judai laughed as he looked at Blackbeard, the rippling across the pirate's aura making it appear as though he once again had flesh, yet blue, "Good to sea you captain. I've been urchin to meet you. I'm dolphin-ately not disappointed."

"Are you here to kill us or make bad jokes?" Blackbeard asked as he stood up tall on his undulating raft

"A man can do both." Judai replied with a wide grin

"Blakes." Blackbeard said with an air of disappointment as he looked to Brian, "You had so much potential, why would you join this bilge rat?"

"You would have done the same for Veritas." Brian retorted without a second thought

"They know about that?" Blackbeard asked in a hushed voice to Ben who nodded

"Why don't you just stop all the self-righteous nonsense and join me?" Judai asked sitting down on his floating cloud of aura, the spot which touched him turning from its vibrant blue into a sickly red, "Why not go back to the good ole scourge of the seven seas?"

"Why not join two witches, a monster, and a mutant?" Blackbeard clarified

"Isn't it better than a bag of bones, a lizard, and a ni…?" Judai began

"Hey!" Brody yelled out, "You clearly have no Bro left in you if there ever was any!"

"Bro? Is that what spirituality has come to now a days?" Judai asked with a sigh, "Well…fine, I gave you the option…but now…Kill them."

The moment the emotionless words left Judai's mouth a large blast exploded in his face, creating a murky cloud around him as he fell back. Blackbeard stood upright with one of his Flintlock's held up, its barrel smoking.

"So let's do this." Blackbeard replied

Brian quickly leapt forth, his forearm turning into a sickle-shaped blade. He took a wide swing at Blackbeard who quickly blocked the blade with one of his pistols, then with a quick punch, struck Brian in the face with his bone-clad knuckles.

"Don't get full of yourself!" Eric yelled as he leapt down, his metal-clawed fingers drawn as he took a swipe at Blackbeard, only to be struck in the chin immediately.

As the witch fell backwards into the water, Ben stood tall shaking his fist as though to shake off the witch's scent.

"You neither." Ben said as he and Blackbeard turned to Luna and Judai who slowly raised himself back to his feet.

"Most impressive." Judai said as the smoke coming off of his face began to dissipate, "This won't be boring after all."

"You're right because I'm going to kill you!" Domashi yelled out as his muscular figure shot forth from the water at Judai.

As Domashi soared through the air the lycanthrope-like lion beast of Luna's shot forth with a wide swing of its claws. Yet the beast did not touch him, as Blackbeard grabbed his leg and pulled him back before he could be struck.

"I appreciate the thought kid, but it looks like I'll have to handle this." Blackbeard said pushing Domashi back to Brody, Bella, and Duncan

"You think you can defeat me?" Luna asked as her growling beast snarled at Blackbeard, "I'm as strong as Death."

"What a coincidence." Blackbeard replied as his flintlocks began glowing and changing shape into that of two cannons attached to his arms, "So am I."

Brian suddenly shot out of the water, both of his arms in blade form, a large sickle protruding from his back. Blackbeard quickly stomped his foot down onto Brian's face and kicked him back as he pushed himself up. Eric began floating out of the water, his eye glowing, yet Ben wasted no time in leaping onto him. Ben drove both of his legs into Eric in a dropkick, propelling himself backwards.

Luna's beast threw itself forth with wide open arms. Blackbeard curled himself up and met with the beast's chest. The beast began to close its arms onto the bone-ball when Blackbeard suddenly fired his cannons in unison. The beast dissipated and the crystal ball it came from shattered, Blackbeard going further into the air.

Luna threw her hand up as though pulling something, the crystal shards flying upwards as glass shrapnel. As they came close to Blackbeard, a sudden blade of brown aura sliced the pieces into fine sand. Luna turned her head to see Ben had been the source of the attack.

"Now we're talking!" Judai yelled with glee as he himself leapt into the air after Blackbeard.

Judai took a large swing which was quickly dodged by Blackbeard. The pirate immediately brought his cannon to Judai's head, yet as he fired, the cannon suddenly blew backwards.

Blackbeard turned his head to see Eric had shot the cannon back with a blast from his eye. Before Blackbeard could do anything about it, Judai threw his palm onto Blackbeard's skull.

"Pay attention." Judai growled, his palm causing the aura around Blackbeard to turn black and tar-like, slowly spreading from his head to his shoulders.

"Blackbeard!" Bella yelled out in despair

"I wouldn't worry about him." Eric said as he appeared before the group

"You have bigger problems to worry about." Brian added as he lifted himself up next to Eric, the eyes of the two filled with a dark grey, their pupils a crimson red

**Group 1**

"Ha-ha, do you all believe that now you stand a chance?" Azazel laughed nearly hysterically, "What are you? You're nothing! Your species isn't even a smug on the tablet of the cosmos!"

"Do you think we care?" Ryan asked pulling himself to his feet, his lower half covered in his blood, "Do you think we do this due to pride?"

"Hold your tongue." Azazel growled

"Hey d!ckbutt." A voice suddenly called out, Azazel quickly and confusedly turning around only to be met with a spearhead being driven into his temple, "Shut up already."

"So are we doing this?" Lance asked as Azazel staggered back, the gaping hole in his skull slowly sealing itself back up

"I've lived a good life." Ryan replied with a smile, two small lines of blood coming from both sides of his mouth down his chin

"I wouldn't want to keep living if I let him get away." Ian added

"I've got a daughter at home." Dawn began, "I don't want her living in a world with this thing."

"Count me in." Archer added

"Oh this is all so touching!" Azazel yelled out as he looked around, his horns extending and gnarling further, his mouth growing sharper fangs and his knees slowly inverting, his lower half becoming more goat-like, "I think I may weep!"

"You will." Lance called out

"Now!" Ryan yelled

Lance took a wide swing with his short spear, Azazel quickly ducking and pushing the meister slightly to the side. Ryan leapt overhead and came down with a wide swing, Azazel once again dodging, yet this time he grabbed Ryan by the shoulder and swung him around. Archer shot forth an Arrow, yet Azazel spun Ryan as a shield, the arrow piercing his shoulder. As Lance turned back around, Azazel threw Ryan into his comrade, both tumbling down.

"Die!" Daniel yelled with ferocity as his flail's chain shot through the air, the skull at its end slowly morphing into a reptile before transforming into a full-fledged dragon which bit down on the demon.

Daniel, Archer, and Dawn looked on with optimism as the dragon clamped its jaw shut, the demon no longer visible. Their hope was soon crushed as the dragon's mouth slowly began closing.

"Hahaha" Azazel chuckled as he appeared, one of his hands held up, pushing the dragon's jaw open, "Is that all?"

Finishing his sentence, Azazel pushed the jaw further, hyperextending the aura dragon. Azazel then grabbed the beast's teeth and pulled it down, quickly shifting his hands to its chain. The demon pulled the chain through the air, dragging Daniel from his stance to the demon. As Daniel came close, the monster lowered his head and shot his horns forth.

A loud horrendously wet snap filled the air as Daniel collided with the sharp end of the demon. Archer and Dawn looked with panic as they saw the beast's dual horns sticking through Daniel.

"You. Are. Nothing." Azazel said once more, Daniel's eyes wide in agony, his armor slowly flashing as it dissipated. The great dragon shrinking back to its normal flail form.

"I won't." Daniel groaned as he slowly grabbed the beast's shoulders

"You already have." Azazel laughed as Daniel dropped his flail, the demon kicking it away nonchalantly.

"Hehehe…" Daniel managed to laugh, his punctured lungs not giving much breath, "I always thought it would be a plane."

"You have the honor of sacrificing your aura to me." Azazel responded, Daniel's blood running down his face.

"You have no idea." Daniel smiled

"Everyone get down!" Taijus yelled as he transformed into his human form, Azazel turning with confusion before Daniel wrapped his arms around the demons neck, his grip using all the energy he could muster from his muscles.

"The last enemy to be….destroyed…" Daniel managed to mutter as a large glowing sphere began shining through his chest.

Ryan managed to rise to his feet only to be tackled by Lance, taking both to the ground before a blinding flash of light filled the sky. The explosion was so intense that the sound wave could not be heard for seconds after it went off. The pressure was so great that it pinned everyone to the ground for moments, disorientation filling everyone.

Dawn slowly pushed herself off the ground, her sight shaking and a constant ringing filling her ears. The left side of her face felt warm and somewhat burnt, as though she had been in the sun too long, yet she knew it was not the sun, rather the energy her comrade had just let off. The smoldering crater where Azazel had been standing moments ago was more than enough confirmation of Daniel's sacrifice, yet it was not enough confirmation of the Demon's death.

"Did we get him…?" Lance asked rising to his feet, his uneasy stance seeming as though he would fall at any moment.

"We had to, no human could survive that." Archer replied holding his ear which still held a loud ringing

"This thing isn't a human, remember?" Ryan asked with a groan as he held his large wound

"I still sense him." Taijus called out walking towards the crater

"So do I." Mary added, "His wavelength is much weaker than before, but he's still here for sure."

"Very observant." Faunel suddenly called out, everyone turning to the fawn.

Faunel stood upright, her head tilted and her brow furrowed. There was something horribly off about her, her stance was far different than her typical stance, her eyes much less joyous than normal.

"F-faunel…?" Lance asked approaching his friend, slowly raising his hand and touching her arm, "Are you okay?"

Faunel looked up at lance, her eyes lifeless and devoid of emotion, yet her mouth revealing a small smile. Lance slowly smiled back as she put her hooved arms on his chest. Everyone looked amongst each other with slight joy before Faunel lunged forth and sunk her teeth into the cheek of Lance.

Lance pushed Faunel away, the fawn taking a long strip of skin with her in her mouth. Lance grabbed his cheek in panic as Faunel gave a large smile, the blood seeping through her teeth.

"That was very courageous of your friend." Faunel said spitting out the flesh, "A lesser man than I would have perished in that."

"Azazel." Lance growled, his eye twitching in rage, "Azazel!"

"I'm not sure how long it will take to recover, but I hope not too long." Faunel, rather, Azazel said rolling his wrists and examining his new body, "This creature's frail body is already beginning to deteriorate."

"I'll kill you!" Lance yelled out drawing his weapon

"Kill me and you kill your lovely little friend here." Azazel replied with a malicious smile, "And we've already established you won't do that."

"We won't need to kill her to kill you." Dawn suddenly called out, Azazel turning his head to see the witch sitting in a lotus position behind him with the candle holder and candle atop her head

"What do you…" Azazel growled before finding he could not move his legs, "What?!"

"You're in Faunel's body right now." Dawn replied, her eyes shut, "Although I couldn't possibly enter your mind, I can enter hers. I can kick you out, and as you yourself said, you're weak right now, we can kill you."

"Heheh…" Azazel laughed in a horrendous noise, his maniacal nature mixing with Faunel's soft voice, "Hahaha! That's your brilliant plan?! Entering this b!tch's mind while I'm here is like walking a tightrope above lava!"

"Dawn!" Taijus suddenly yelled out, "This is unnecessary! We have him trapped, we don't have to do this!"

"Every second he's in there he gets stronger and she gets weaker!" Dawn called back

"But…" Taijus groaned

"She's right…" Lance grunted as he regained his breath, "This is our best chance…"

"She could end up dying!" Taijus called back

"I couldn't seconds ago?!" Dawn yelled back

"Well at least out here I can protect you!" Taijus yelled in a voice of panic and concern, a miserable grunt, "I can't help you if you enter her mind!"

"It isn't your job to protect me." Dawn replied coldly, "I can protect myself. And I'm going to make sure this monster dies."

**Group 3**

"Face it!" Huxwhukh growled holding Eddie by the scarf, his body hanging half-limp, "You're finished."

"It's not over until the fat lady sings." Eddie replied with a smirk, his sharp reptilian teeth showing

"What's that supposed to mean?" Huxwhukh asked confused, his beak clacking as it opened and shut, allowing Eddie a glimpse of the back of the beast's throat where a mask sat

"It means…" Eddie began before taking a large breath and spitting forth a glob of a transparent light green substance into the bird's eyes, the creature rearing back with a loud squawk of pain giving the reptoid the chance to shoot his hands up and grasp the upper and lower parts of the beast's beak, "Never count your eggs before they hatch."

"What's with all of your stupid sayings!?" Huxwhuxkh growled as the ends of Eddie's scarf shot forth to hold the bird-beasts hands back, Eddie slowly pulling at the beak

"What's with this outer shell?" Eddie asked, his blue tongue slipping out of his mouth a moment as he pulled the beak open further, suddenly the beak bursting into three segments revealing the wooden masked face beneath, "What kind of monster hides its face in multiple masks?"

"Humans for one." Huxwhukh replied, the two peering eyes beneath his mask staring into Eddie's eyes, "Reptoids secondly. Vampires thirdly. Need I go on?"

"There's a difference between what they do and what you do." Eddie spoke as he slowly reached for the mask, "Humans, Reptoids, and even Vampires don't pretend to be other things, they don't hide their true self out of fear, rather out of respect. They reveal their true selves little by little out of kindness."

"Heheh." Huxwhukh laughed as Eddie removed the mask revealing the human face underneath. A tanned man with a look as though he had seen much in the world and didn't want to see more. Across his cheeks and nose laid a blue swirling pattern imbedded in his skin, "So mister humanitarian, tell me. Right now your friends are in grave peril. Should you kill me and risk letting them get killed, or should you free me and risk me killing you."

Eddie slowly turned his head to see behind him. Amongst the floating wreckage Brian stood holding his blade-formed hand at Bella who held Duncan in his shield mode. Eric stood holding Brody by the throat, lifting him up, his talon digging into the back of the boys neck flesh.

"Damn it…" Eddie growled, for just a moment he loosened his grip and began to make way for his friends, yet Huxwhukh only needed the instant.

"Wrong choice!" Huxwhukh laughed as he grabbed ahold of Eddie from behind and held the reptoid tight

"No! Let go!" Eddie thrashed about, Huxwhukh only tightening his grip further

"Khahaha." The bird beast laughed, his human face seeming more inhuman than his mask, "Now watch, and keep watching"

Eddie turned his head up in despair to see his companions. He watched with horror as Judai struck Blackbeard, sending him backwards into Luna who kicked the pirate in the back, his spinal column turning in a sickly gnarl. Brian stomped his foot down on the shield mode Duncan, his hand lifting Bella by the collar and his blade held to her throat.

"Do you see now?" Huxwhukh asked resting his head on Eddie's shoulder, "Why keep fighting us? If you join us you may actually survive, but when you fight aside roaches, you die like a roach."

"Funny thing about roaches." A familiar voice called out, Huxwhukh turned his head only to be struck full force in the face by a tremendous blunt object. "There's always more, even when you think they're all gone."

The bird beast staggered back, allowing Eddie to escape his grip and stumble forth to be caught by his savior. The reptoid turned his eyes up to see the figure holding him upright.

"I'm sorry Bella, I really am." Brian said, one of his eyes turning milky for a moment before reverting back to its dark veil

"Not as sorry as you're going to be." A voice called out as it fell down from the sky, Brian turning around just in time to lift his blade and block the swipe. The impact of the weapon clashing against his blade caused a great ring of water to splash up from around the wreckage they stood on. Brian turned his attention to the sharp teeth of the grand weapon that had been used on him, his curiosity peaked.

"Just face facts bud." Judai laughed as Luna held Blackbeard's arms back, his head drooped down, "As strong as you think you are, you're no match for me."

"There's more to strength than muscle mass." A voice called out, Judai slowly turning his head, one eye twitching as the other dilated in aggravation

"Never count a pirate out." Ben added as he stood up beside the new voice

"Who the hell are you?!" Judai yelled out as he saw the three new adversaries

"I was Gwen." The first, the one holding Eddie, replied. Her skin was cracked and chipped, no flesh residing, only the porcelain like exterior of the doll she was.

"I am Skylar and Gluttony." The second replied, her long toothed blade still stuck atop Brian's blade, her deep red hair half hidden by a hoodie held up atop the back of her head. Her tank top cut just above her stomach revealing the large mouth across it

"And I'm Olivia." The girl beside Ben replied, the most typical looking out of the trio.

"We're here to kill you." The three called out in unison

**Chapter 20- Because.**

**Group 1-Inside Faunel's Mind**

"Where are we?" Mary's voice called out as Dawn slowly walked down a long dark pathway.

The light from Mary's candle form illuminated a large area, yet nothing was visible. No floor was present, no walls, nothing. Dawn continued onwards undeterred through the void.

"We're in the space between my mind and Faunel's." Dawn replied continuing onwards, direction losing all meaning, up and down fusing together, "Soon we'll be in her mind."

"And what exactly are we going to see when we get there?" Mary asked, her bare form glimmering in the shining candle-holder

"Faunel's mind." Dawn replied simply

"And what does a possessed fawn's mind look like?" Mary asked brushing her hair from her face

"Not sure, never been in one." Dawn replied turning her eye just a moment, "But I can tell you this much, one wrong move and the darkness will consume us."

"What do you mean?" Mary asked

Dawn held the candle up high and sent forth a small burst of energy causing a momentary flash of light. For just the moment the light illuminated everything around the two, revealing a hairline crack in a thin ground of glass over a pit of spikes, spires, blades, corpses, horns, and blood. The sky expanded as far as either could see, filled with long nails, thorns, razor-sharp blades, hanging guillotines, and all manners of items.

"I assume that's the darkness?" Mary said a bit worried as the image faded

"No, it's a distraction." Dawn replied, "It's an attempt to get us to lose focus, it's merely a façade of the true darkness. We are in Maya right now, we must seek Moksha."

"I'm not exactly familiar with those words." Mary muttered, "Are they witch words?"

"Hindu." Dawn replied, "It's difficult to describe."

"Well seeing as we're walking a tightrope hanging over a pit of death…" Mary responded, "I think we have a little time."

"Many religions, beliefs, superstition's, what have you, belief in some form of God." Dawn began, "Whether it's polytheistic or monotheistic. In the Hindu belief however, we are Monistic. We believe that there is nothing but God."

"So what are all the multi-armed creatures and elephant head guys?" Mary asked

"They're forms of God." Dawn replied, the darkness carrying on, "In a way, we're all forms of God. There is no actual earth, or matter. What we experience is Maya, the illusion of matter. I could get more specific, but the main point is that we must reach moksha, that is, we must get past this world. We must come to realize that it's all an illusion. We shouldn't act out of desire for a result."

"Like what you're doing now with trying to kill a demon?" Mary asked

"Obviously I haven't quite gotten past the material world yet." Dawn responded with a shrug, "If I had, I wouldn't be here."

"This Maya stuff is kind of odd." Mary said a bit in awe, "Do you really believe in that?"

"It would be foolish not to." Dawn said, "I go inside of people's minds. I enter their own personal made Maya. Think of it all as a dream. In a dream say a tiger is chasing you. Don't you run? Of course you do, because for that moment the tiger is real to you. But when you wake up you know it was just a dream, you come to realize the truth. I do the same thing when I enter minds, I am surrounded by falseness which can still harm me, it is my job to see through the illusion, to reach past it."

"I guess in a way our beliefs aren't so different." Mary began

"What do you believe?" Dawn asked

"Well, I'm a Catholic." Mary replied, "In a way, our goal is to see past all the material of this world and be better for the sake of being good."

"We are similar." Dawn said with a smile coming from the corner of her mouth, "We both wish to be a better person so we can go to a better place."

Just as Dawn finished this sentence from the darkness a great wall appeared. Dawn looked at it, its composition was rather distinct. There stood a grand thicket of green, brown, rot, and growth. Trees, vines, moss, thorns all composed the ever-expanding wall.

"What's this?" Mary asked, her image glimmering in the candle-holder

"This is the outskirt of Faunel's mind." Dawn replied slowly approaching the wall, some of the vines appearing to move in serpentine patterns.

"So are we supposed to climb it?" Mary half joked

"It's all a matter…" Dawn began as she slowly lifted her hand to touch the wall, suddenly her flesh sinking through the thorns and vines as though they were non-existent, "Of knowing what you can and can't do."

"That was pretty cool." Mary said as Dawn pushed her way through the thicket, slowly making her way to the opposite side.

"Tha…" Dawn began before she pierced through the opposite end of the wall, seeing what lay beyond.

"Oh sh!t."

**Group 3**

"Oh look, now they have reinforcements, what ever shall we do?" Judai grumbled, "Holy sh!t you insects are getting annoying! I swear I'll roast the flesh off every last one of you!"

"I have no flesh." Gwen called out tapping her chitin-like shell

"I operate better as bones anyway." Olivia added as two bones slowly began sliding out of her forearm

"I could go for some roast meat." Skylar added, her mouth stomach licking its lips

"Kinky." Judai replied with a raising of his brow

"Bloody f^cking hell!" Blackbeard yelled suddenly swinging his legs up, kicking Judai in the face, then quickly throwing his head back to strike Luna in the chin, giving the pirate enough time to free himself and fall backwards to Ben and Olivia. "This is getting old!"

"Old?" Judai asked turning his head back, his nose bleeding a pitch-like substance, "How old are you? 200 years? Oh boo hoo, you wouldn't know old if it p!ssed dust on you! You creatures sicken me! Why can't you ever just accept how f^cked you are! If something has restless leg syndrome and cancer, you try to cure the leg while b!tching about how no one's helping the cancer! You're worms that deserve to die!"

"You're disgusting." Olivia retorted

"Says the monster." Luna replied, "Judai and I do as our nature should, but you, you're an abomination on humanity. You are nature's mistake. You deserve to die."

"Well then, let's settle this the pirate way." Blackbeard called out tilting his tricorn hat down a tad, "First one to die, loses."

With this Blackbeard shot forth into the air, his two cannons drawn and ready. Olivia and Ben also joined in throwing themselves into the air after Blackbeard towards the two enemies. The five prepared to clash, Judai the only one with a smile, a twisted, demented smile.

"Can you stand?" Gwen asked looking down at Eddie

"Uhh…yeah…" Eddie replied rising to his feet, his eyes locked on Gwen, the doll half fearing how the reptoid would react to her appearance, yet all Eddie felt was gratitude for being saved, "Thank you." The reptoid said simply and with the utmost sincerity.

"Um…you're welcome." Gwen replied with a small feeling of joy she hadn't felt since she was entirely human

"Lovely!" Huxwhukh called out as he lowered himself to the level of the two, "Now that you two have had a moment, why don't you go get married and have kids, that's how it works with human's right?"

"I'm not a human." Eddie retorted

"I'm not a human anymore." Gwen added

"Oh right, I almost forgot." Huxwhukh nodded, his bird-head façade turned into shoulder pads, his 'human' face in full view, "You're just a lizard that learned how to mimic speech, and you're just a doll that can move without strings."

"What do you know? You're a birdbrain kishin." Eddie responded throwing himself into position

"What do I know? Hmm, let's see." Huxwhukh grinned, "Well, I know that you're cold blooded, and if your surrounding temperature where to suddenly drop, you wouldn't last very long. And I know that miss dolly here has jointed limbs, something placed in those joints would render her immobile."

"What on earth, where is this coming from?" Gwen asked, "I thought it was a brain-dead monster."

"Unlike you creatures, I am not limited to one form." Huxwhukh replied reaching behind him, "When I must be savage, I can be, but when an intellect is called for, I also have that."

"I'm getting really sick of you talking!" Eddie called out as he leapt into the air and shot down at the beast with an elbow.

"Excellent." Huxwhukh grinned as he quickly pulled forth his fist, dust falling out of his knuckles.

Eddie came down, Huxwhukh shot his taloned foot up and caught the reptoid by the throat, as Gwen threw herself forth Huxwhukh threw his hands contents at her. A cloud of dust formed over her which quickly coagulated and hardened over her, causing her to stiffen up where she stood.

"Khe-he-he" Kuxwhukh laughed as he pulled forth a strange slimy green mass and bit off a large chunk

"Let go!" Eddie growled as Huxwhukh tightened his grip

"Oh no, we're going for a swim." Huxwhukh replied smiling, his teeth still grinding the strange mixture.

With a cackling laugh, Huxwhukh leapt backwards into the frigid water, Eddie firmly grasped. The two shot downwards into the frigid depths with velocity, Eddie thrashing about every second of the trip. The cool water causing a painful reaction in the Reptoids body, his energy was lowering by the nanosecond.

"No!" Gwen yelled out as she mustered all of her energy to try and break free of her jammed joints, "I won't let this happen! I am not helpless! I will not let someone die when I can do something about it!"

As Huxwhukh continued his descent, Eddie managed to throw his foot forth and kick the bird long enough to loosen his grip. Eddie turned around and made way for the surface only to have his ankle grabbed once again by the beast. The reptoid let forth an aggressive hiss as he turned his head, yet Huxwhukh only responded with a smirk.

As Huxwhukh pulled Eddie down once again, a sudden force struck the bird-beast. To Eddie's surprise Gwen had broken free of the coagulated adherent and now wrapped her arms and legs around Huxwhukh, binding him and dragging him down to the sea floor.

Eddie looked up, seeing the thin rays of light piercing the coherent surface of the water, he then looked back to see Gwen and the beast sinking. His body temperature within critical ranges, his oxygen low, Eddie knew he should do his best to reach the surface, but he didn't.

"What really separates us from the animals?" Eddie thought to himself as he began swimming towards the sinking duo, "What makes us better? Why don't we just do what we must to survive or fulfill our own interests?"

Eddie shot his foot forth into the face of Huxwhukh, the bird beast letting out a scream allowing the reptoid to shoot his hand into Huxwhukh's mouth and rip out the green slimy substance along with the tongue of the monster.

"Because we know that there's a right and a wrong." Eddie thought as Huxwhukh threw Gwen off of himself and shot his hands forth around Eddie's neck, "Although we may not always like doing what's right, we still try our best to do it."

"Not because it's best for our survival…but because we have a sense of helping others." Eddie continued in thought as he slipped his jaw down and bit off Huxwhukh's thumb, giving himself a moment to escape his grasp, "Sometimes we get so caught up in the complexity of things we forget the simple stuff."

As Eddie thought this he began drifting backwards, sinking as his lungs no longer had oxygen in them. The boy stared upwards as a crowd of seaweed gently raised their tendril arms to embrace him. The light he saw was simple yet astounding as it began fading into darkness.

"If I should die before I wake…" Eddie tried to speak, no sound coming from his waterlogged mouth, "Pray the Lord, my soul to take."

**Inside Faunel's Mind**

Dawn slowly moved her foot forth, the grass beneath her foot crackling and snapping in a sound reflective of shattering glass. The grass and trees all around looked very stiff yet fragile, several hairline cracks forming webs on the trees revealing their true makeup as glass.

"This can't possibly all be Azazel's work." Mary said, her image gleaming in the candleholder Dawn held

"Well, it is a demon." Dawn replied taking another step forward, the crackling snap of the glass grass actually pleasing her witch desire for destruction," But If I'm being honest, no, I don't feel this is all Azazel…I feel some of this must be the work of…"

"Faunel…?" Mary asked as a being stepped forth

Dawn turned her attention to the creature before her. It was indeed Faunel, yet a very frail very detached reflection of the girl. Her skin was pulled tightly over her bones, her flesh seeming malnourished and emaciated. Her clothes were rags, barely covering any of her bare body. Her eyes were covered in darkness, her lips black, and down her cheeks were black markings resembling tear trails. Last of all, covering her hooves were filthy linen bandages with deep black and red stains across them.

"Yes, it is I." Faunel replied in a meek voice, her vacant eyes turning upwards to meet Dawn's eyes.

"We're here to help you." Dawn called out looking upwards at the sky which had large cracks all throughout it spreading darkness

"Why?" Faunel asked slowly moving forward a step, as she did so a piece of bark on a tree behind her fell off shattering as it crashed into the ground, "I don't believe I asked for your help."

"But you need our help." Dawn retorted

"I needed help when I was a prisoner." Faunel said calmly, her voice void of emotion, "It took far longer than I hoped, but I received help then. I do not need help now, I need a release."

"What do you mean?" Dawn asked a bit confused as the cracks in the sky began spreading out, a web of shattering glass forming

"Kill me." Faunel replied simply, "If you kill me you can also stop Azazel. Everyone wins. Do what you must for survival, it's the rule of nature."

"Damn it Faunel!" Mary yelled out suddenly, the flames of the candle holder whipping back and forth and growing, slowly wrapping themselves into an avatar for the girl, "Everyone goes through hard times. But the truth is, you can't dwell on the past. You only fail so you can succeed, you have the bad days so the good days are all the sweeter."

Mary continued her speech as the cracks in the sky began widening, a thick tar slowly seeping through into the world.

"In your life, if you ever did any tiny iota of good, you've made your life valuable." Mary continued as the tar began spreading itself across the ground, "And I know for a fact you have! Life is tough, but we were born because we can handle it. Stop wallowing in self-pity and fight! You never fail until you accept failure. There are others in this world besides yourself, and you owe it to them to keep on fighting!"

As Mary continued her speech tendrils of the pitch began rising up and wrapping around Dawn and the flame avatar. The tendrils tightened their grip and constricted the two, slowly pulling the girls down to the ground, the sound of the glass world cracking and shattering underneath them.

"Oh such sweet words," A deep voice called out as several of the tendrils began wrapping around each other forming a hardened system of gnarled bones, "Such a pity that they all turn into bitter wax in my ears."

"You're Azazel." Faunel said turning to the skeleton, its leg bones resembling that of a goat, its skull allowing two gnarled horns to protrude, in its chest a glowing swirling orb of energy which mirrored the glowing in the skulls eyes.

"I have many names." The beast replied as the pitch formed a ragged cloak around the skeleton, "But I am indeed best known as Azazel."

"You're a demon." Faunel added as one of her linen bandages unraveled itself, slowly cascading to the ground revealing her hoof to be made of glass with cracks all throughout. Each crack was filled with a hardened red paste resembling coagulated blood.

"Such a pity I am not yet at my fullest." Azazel replied throwing his hand forth, the ragged cloak fluttering with it, his boned fingers twisted and sharpened, "But that is why I need you to aid me."

"Why should I help you?" Faunel asked taking a small step backwards only to feel her foot land in the pitch

"Oh, there is no option." Azazel said with a malicious tone, "I am taking your body, and I am ripping apart your soul to patch mine up and return to my full strength."

"You're a demon, can't you just recover yourself?" Faunel asked trying to free her feet from the rising pitch.

"You see, your little friend did quite a number on me with that explosion." Azazel began, "My physical body was destroyed, and although I can indeed use my strength to manifest a new temporary body, it would hardly be ideal. Your body on the other hand is perfect, so much potential energy in that soul. And we demons are not limited by the earthly 'gender', so there's hardly a problem there."

"So you just want to use me." Faunel said turning her attention upwards, her eyes locking with Azazel's, "I'm just a means to an end with you, a tool to finish a job."

"Please don't kid yourself." Azazel smirked, "You aren't that valuable."

"I'm asking nicely." Faunel began, "…get out of my head."

"Heheh, really?" Azazel laughed to himself, "You think you can just snap your fingers and I'll give up?"

"Second time." Faunel continued, the pitch around her starting to bubble, "Get out of my head."

"What if I don't?" Azazel asked smirking to himself

"Last chance." Faunel said sternly

"What are you going to do?" Azazel questioned with a brazen grin

"Get out of my head!" Faunel yelled at the top of her lungs, hunching over, all the air in her lungs being used to create a near glass-shattering tone. The world around her suddenly exploded in cracks, the glass separating in a large web of cracks before flying open, large glass chunks filling the dark void, Faunel standing in the middle of the upwards funnel of shrapnel, Azazel taken aback by the burst.

"Now we're talking." Azazel said with a sick glee, "Let's see what you're made of!"

Azazel leapt forth, throwing his feet into shard after shard guiding his way downwards to Faunel. The fawn stood looking upwards at her aggressor as he came downward. Suddenly some of the shattered trees roots shot forth wrapping around the Demon, yet he wasted no time in shattering the glass-made vines. Faunel sternly grimaced, the shards of the shattered vine suddenly shooting forth into Azazel sending him with force through a large plate of glass with glass-grass blades on it, all shattering into the beast.

"Go!" Faunel yelled once again in her reverberating scream, the glass around the demon suddenly shooting forth into the beast, turning Azazel into a cruel human pincushion for the shrapnel.

Faunel watched as large plate of glass after plate of glass shot into Azazel, creating a cocoon of shrapnel. The plates crackled and snapped as each did their best to sink further into the beast. All that seeped through the ball of glass was a thick black blood.

"That was certainly interesting." Azazel's deep voice called out from the ball, "Is it my turn now?"

Suddenly the ball exploded into a fine powder, all that remained was its evil core. Azazel floated in space, his skeletal figure reforming, his eyes steaming and carrying out their illumination.

Before Faunel could react, Azazel shot down wards directly towards the girl. He wrapped his hand around the girl's neck and smashed her through the large reflective plate of glass she had stood on. The glass shattered, Azazel pushing Faunel through it.

"I must admit, I didn't expect you to put up a fight." Azazel said as he held Faunel up with one hand and slowly placed his second hand onto the center of her chest, "And you didn't put up much of one, but you tried, I'm impressed."

"Who…said…?" Faunel began, "I was done?"

With the last syllable leaving her lips, Faunel brought her hand-hoof upwards with a large slash. Azazel slowly turned his head to see that protruding from her wrapped hoof a large glass kopesh-like blade was formed.

"Wha…?" Azazel began before Faunel threw the blade down directly through his clavicle. The girl gave a large kick and pushed the beast off of her, his body going upwards and striking a floating panel of glass.

"We're in my mind, not yours." Faunel replied raising her second arm, her unwrapped hoof which now had a large round glass shield on it.

"You are quite full of surprises aren't you?" Azazel asked as he stood up, his flesh pulling itself back together.

"My friends have tried so hard to stop you." Faunel said as a Grecian helm made of glass began forming atop her head, "And I've been so busy wrapped in self-pity to even try my best. Well that's going to change."

"Who the hell do you think you are?!" Azazel roared as a constant crackling filled the air

"I'm Faunel. I'm not a saint, I'm not a fiend. I am who I am. And right now…I'm your demise. " Faunel replied as two enormous bird-like wings made of glass shards formed from her back

**Group 3**

"An abomination and two dead men." Luna said staring at the three foes, "You're a bad punchline, not a threat."

"Technically I could say the same about your hair." Blackbeard retorted

"Heheh…" Judai snickered, "He has a point."

"Shut up." Luna snapped

"Oh…" Judai muttered, "Lighten up."

As Judai said this he threw forth a bottle at Luna which smashed open setting the witch on fire. Blackbeard, Ben, and Olivia all looked with shock as Luna thrashed about in the air, only to fall from the sky downwards to the sea.

"You f^cking psycho!" Olivia yelled leaping into the air, several of her bones protruding from her body creating sharp quills

"Hey, I just did you a solid, and this is how you thank me?" Judai asked as he grasped the sharp clavicle quills of the girl in midair, "Say…you're not a half bad piece of Punani, doing anything later?"

"Ben go after the witch." Blackbeard commanded

"But Captain…" Ben began

"That's an order!" Blackbeard yelled back as he leapt into the air after Olivia and Judai.

Ben sighed as he threw off his jacket and dove into the water. Blackbeard leapt forth only to have Judai throw Olivia backwards at him.

"You know, for a guardian you aren't very impressive." Judai said brushing off his brow, his silver implants of his arm glimmering in the sun, "Sure you can carry cannons and jump inhuman heights, but it gets old."

Blackbeard grinded his teeth as he caught Olivia and began hovering in air, his large canons letting out a constant small flame which acted as a sort of propulsion system.

"Now let's see what's happening right now." Judai began as he leaned back in the platform of aura he floated atop, "Bird-face is killing two of your cronies. Erik and Brian are about to kill the rest of your students. I'm going to light you on fire and p!ss the flames out….oh and while I'm thinking of it. I'm sure Asura has already eaten whoever fought him. Azazel probably killed whoever fought him a while ago. Legion is doing his legion nonsense, so I'm sure whether he wins or loses he'll be back soon enough. And the kishin league we built up…whatever the hell it's up to, I'm sure there's a lot of innocents being killed."

"Do you really enjoy this?" Olivia called out, "You have so much strength, so much potential, you could help everyone, be treated with respect and gratitude, live a happy life. You don't need to hurt people just because people act like you should. You are yourself, not what others try to make you into. You can do better…just…stop this madness."

"Oh." Judai gasped suddenly, "Your words have suddenly opened my eyes! By Jove! Genius! All along I was really just a sweet little girl at heart wanting to prance in the daisies! But oh no! My hand….it's evil! Hand! Why are you lighting that Molotov! What! Don't throw it at the girl! Oh no!"

Judai smiled a viscous smile as he threw forth the explosive. Blackbeard quickly spun around avoiding the projectile, only to have Judai launch himself forth and dive-kick directly into Blackbeard's back.

"See, now this is why I'm not impressed!" Judai yelled in Blackbeard's ear as he grabbed the guardian by the shoulder and pulled forth his roman blade.

As Judai brought his blade down, Olivia's spine broke through her skin, long and sharp. One of the bladed vertebrae struck Judai in the shoulder, pushing the monster back. Judai's hand was determined however and he brought the blade down for a strike.

The air filled with a horribly wet snap as Judai's blade met flesh. The monster fell backwards laughing his malicious laugh, his blade carrying a trail of blood. Olivia looked to see that the blood was not hers, and the snap was not Blackbeard's. Blackbeard turned his head to see that his chibi ally, Flint, had transformed into his non-weapon form and taken the blow.

Within moments Blackbeard and Olivia found themselves on a large piece of driftwood, the small humanoid laying before them. Lock, the second of Blackbeard's companions and the one resembling a cat, stood over her comrade.

"Fli…?" The small creature questioned its comrade.

Blackbeard kneed over the two, the large flesh wound reaching from Flint's left shoulder down to his hip, a thick clear liquid coagulating over it.

"Fli…" Lock stated again, slowly nudging her partner with her small rounded hands, "Fli…"

Olivia looked down at the pumpkin headed Flint, no motion coming from the small being. Yet Lock was determined. The cat humanoid nudged her partner again, continuing with her call.

"Fli…" Lock called again, either refusing to accept the situation or not being able to comprehend it.

"…Lo…" Flint groaned in a final breath, slowly raising his small hand to the shoulder of his partner before dropping backwards, a small blue orb of aura rising from his chest.

"Oh no, the little one died." Judai said as he pulled himself upwards to the drift board, "May I suggest we cremate the poor bugger?"

"You killed my friend." Blackbeard muttered as he looked down at Flint's body.

"I killed my friend too if it makes you feel better." Judai smirked

"You killed my friend." Blackbeard muttered again

"Uh, yeah, we established tha…" Judai began, yet before he could finish Blackbeard's arm shot forth, piercing through Judai's throat.

"Shut. Up." Blackbeard said rising to his feet, his boned fingers inside Judai's voice box, ripping the chords.

Judai threw forth his hand to try and strike Blackbeard, yet the guardian was too quick and caught the monster by the wrist.

"You enjoy bringing others pain?" Blackbeard asked, "Let's see how you like it!"

With the anger rising in his voice, Blackbeard quickly and ferociously ripped Judai's arm clean off its shoulder. Blackbeard lifted Judai into the, still holding the beast by the inside of his throat, pulling the lighter from his pocket.

"Cremation huh?" Blackbeard asked pulling out a flask of rum, "I'll drink to that."

Blackbeard threw a small drop of the rum in his mouth before pouring the rest down Judai's mouth and chest. Then with cruel intent, Blackbeard lit the thick alcohol on fire. Judai screamed as best he could without his voice, yet through his agony came laughter, and as the flame quickly died out, the charred black flesh that remained carried on its laughter.

"Has ight…o it…" Judai groaned, his bottom lip fused to his top and ripping off as he tried to speak.

"I could keep you alive." Blackbeard began as he rested his hand on Lock's shoulder, "I could torture you for years and years to come…but I'm not like you…I'll give you what you deserve…death."

Judai let out another laugh as Blackbeard brought his flintlock pistol, Lock, up to the temple of Judai and pulled the trigger. As Ben pulled himself up from the water, Luna over his shoulder, he saw Blackbeard drop the body of Judai. The body did not even strike the water before it dissipated into the grotesque soul it was.

"Thank God." Luna groaned as Ben pulled himself and the witch onto the driftwood.

"What?" Ben asked confused

"It took you way too long to kill him." Luna replied sitting down on the ground, her hair still steaming a small stream if white smoke, "I thought I was going to have to kill him."

"Don't think you can lie your way out of this." Ben snapped angrily, "You tried to kill us! You aided that monster!"

"Oh please, if I really wanted you dead, you would be dead." Luna retorted, "Besides, don't you find it odd that Eric and Brian have had more than enough time to kill the students, yet they haven't even thrown a punch?"

Ben slowly turned his head to see Brian and the witch. Surprisingly, Luna was telling the truth. Brian and Skylar were in a stalemate, neither moving, and Eric did nothing to attack her nor the students.

"You were playing him…" Ben muttered as he turned back to the witch

"Bingo." Luna replied patting down her now short hair, "But thanks to you, now I'm practically bald."

"We lost one of our good comrades because of you!" Ben yelled, "With your help we could have killed him far earlier! Flint wouldn't have had to sacrifice himself!"

Luna turned her head to see Blackbeard kneeling over Flint's body, the poor creature's soul still floating over its chest. The witch pondered for a moment on the matter, and then an idea struck her.

**DWMA- Death Room**

"I don't feel his presence anymore." Death said calmly, "I believe he's dead."

"Who?" Liz asked looking at the mirror which was now shattered, blurry images in each shard

"…Asura." Death replied

"Fool!" A familiar and unexpected voice called out

"Excalibur." Death said simply as he turned around to see the short white creature behind him, its top hat and cane both waving back and forth as it walked.

"Asura is not dead." Excalibur stated, "He is far from death in fact."

"I no longer feel his wavelength." Death retorted

"Fool!" Excalibur called out throwing his arm and cane forth, "That is because he has taken the fight to a place you cannot reach."

"What do you mean?" Maka asked

"Fool!" Excalibur called out waving his cane in the woman's face, "Asura has taken the fight someplace where they cannot be interrupted. He wishes to maximize his madness' effect."

"So…" Liz began

"We cannot help, or even watch them." Death spoke out, "They are completely on their own, whether it is going well or not, they must do their best to stop Asura. They must believe in themselves."

**Group 4**

"How…how have you managed this?" the beast's reverberating voice called out, "How?!"

"That's asking the age-old question." War's voice replied as he stepped forth, the soft ground underneath his feet compressing, scuffs and divots all throughout it from shrapnel and crossfire, "Quantity or Quality?"

"You are one!" Legion called out as he propped himself against a rock, his face half covered in a swirling black aura, the rest a human face with a large gash across its cheek, "We are…!"

"Few now." Sister Ashley called out with a smug grin as she followed War

"Look pal, I'm going to clear this up for you." War said setting down his shotgun which quickly reformed into Oswald, "Strength in numbers…is just a lie. Most creatures are social beings, so they tend to feel that they're strongest with a large group. At its core, sure it is true, no creature can truly live on its own, that's madness. But the truth is, after a point numbers are just that, numbers. You can have millions and it won't matter. As long as I have my weapons, my students, my friends, I'll win. Quality is vastly superior to quantity."

"Quality you say…" Legion muttered, "Well then, let's see how…"

Before Legion could finish his last sentence, War abruptly interrupted with a slice from his blade, separating the beasts head from his neck.

"Every time someone starts like that, it means they're going to do something stupid." War said shaking his head as Legions head rolled off onto the ground, "And I'm not in the mood for stupid right now."

"It's rude to interrupt!" Legion yelled somehow flicking his head upwards, his mouth latching onto War's arm, his teeth clamped in.

"Ow! Bad demon!" War called out shaking his arm about trying to get the head off

"You want quality?!" Legion called out as he loosened his bite and flew off, "I'll give you quality!"

The decapitated head of the beast landed on a corpse of a fallen Demon member. The head rested for a moment before several tendrils slipped out from its neck, the tendrils inserting themselves into the body.

"What's it doing?" Sister Ashley asked as the body rose up, six tendrils slowly growing from its shoulders

"…something stupid…" War replied with a sigh as the six tendrils grew identical heads, each with different colored glowing eyes, each resembling legion.

"How's this?!" Legion roared, each head speaking in unison as he spread his arms which grew longer and thinner.

"Stupid and ugly, you're the whole package aren't you?" War asked rolling his wrist and the blade within it which began reforming into a whip

"Let's see if you can back up those words!" Legion roared, his center head growing three gnarled horns, his legs stretching longer and thinner, his long thin fingers turning into claws as his seven heads turned their attention to War.

"I don't get it, is he Scylla?" Heather's voice asked from the whip War held

"Na' Na', e's apose ta' be te' beast fro' 'evelat'on, 'ight?" Oswald asked

"Are you sure? Because he only has three horns." Sister Ashley retorted

"Maybe a giant?" A hooded monk added

"What? No. I mean…a hydra?" War stated turning back to his group

"But Hydra's don't start off with multiple heads, you have to cut them off." Heather replied

"That's true, maybe Ozzy's right." War nodded, "See any pregnant women or eagles?"

"That dead guy over there has an eagle tattoo on his neck." Sister Ashley pointed out amongst the piles of corpses

"And I'm pregnant." Heather added

"Well I mean…wait…" War began before shooting his eyes down to the whip

"No way!" The monk and Sister Ashley called out in gleeful unison

"You mean…" War began, "…I'm…I'm going to be a father?"

"Are you serious?!" Legion roared, "A demon is standing before you and you're talking about this nonsense?! And you call me stupid?! You're ridiculous! How did you become a horseman?!"

"Ozzy!" War called out ignoring Legion, "Get the cigars from the bus!"

"I'm going to kill you!" Legion roared as he took a large step forward, yet War quickly shot forth his whip around the beast's feet and pulled it down to the ground

"Does anyone have any champagne?" War asked joyfully turning to his group

"I've got apple juice…" Sister Ashley replied

"An I got vodka." Ozzy called out

"Mix them! We celebrate!" War called out as two of Legions heads shot for him, his reflexes being quick and allowing him to side step the attack and punch one head with such strength that it struck the other, knocking both back.

"See Master War, good things come to those who deserve them." Sister Ashley said happily with a small rocking on her feet

"Haha! This is a great day!" War called out ecstatically

"I am an incarnate of evil and madness!" Legion roared springing back to its feet

"Hello incarnate of evil and madness." War replied, a tear in his eye, "I'm dad."

Legion roared yet again, rage rising, his blood practically boiling. Four of the beasts heads shot down at War, yet he quickly dodged them and grabbed ahold of all of them within his massive hands. With the strength of many men, War hoisted Legion into the air by the necks and threw him down into the ground hard.

"Ay, 'ere w' 're." Ozzy said mixing a bottle of vodka and apple juice together

"I'm surprised that you can even have children." Sister Ashley said

"Well, the effects of the Black Tears aren't fully known." Heather replied

"No…I mean…aren't you like eight hundred years old?" Sister Ashley asked

"Oh that, well you see…" Heather began

**Group 1- Inside Faunel's mind**

"I must admit." Azazel began outstretching his long stretched arms in a mocking bow, his gnarled horns twisting around each other and pointing at Faunel as he did so, "For such a fragile mind, you put up quite a fight."

"I'm nothing special." Faunel retorted looking up at the beast, "Strength lies in everyone, it's just a matter of finding it."

Azazel leapt forth through the air, the pitch cloak he had hanging from his bones flapped as he did so. Faunel quickly pulled forth her large shield, the beast's sharp fingers striking into its center, the glass somehow withstanding his blow.

"I'm getting sick of this game!" Azazel roared, his jaw bone clacking against his skull as he did so. His fingers drove into the glass, then his cloak became animate and began wrapping their tendril like shreds around the shield.

Faunel grunted as she quickly placed her blade at the bottom of her shield and sliced upwards quickly, slicing off the tendrils and Azazel's hand. The beast threw himself backwards in a bit of pain, laughing rather than screaming. As the beast flew backwards Faunel saw her opportunity and went after the monster.

Faunel took a wide swing with the cracked blade she held, Azazel dodged backwards leaping from glass panel to glass panel. Each panel the beast placed his bone hoofed feet on would shatter the glass into large sharp chunks.

As Faunel thrust forth her sword at the beast, she suddenly found her arm immobile. The fawn turned her head to see a black tendril wrapping itself around her shoulder and arm. Faunel turned to see the hand she had cut from the beast was latched onto her shield, several tendrils coming from it and wrapping around her.

"You forget who I am!" Azazel roared as Faunel tried to fight the growing web of tendrils constricting her

"No." Faunel retorted as the beast slowly approached her, "I know exactly who you are…but I don't fear you!"

Faunel's glass shard wings threw themselves open, the tendrils shredding off as she lunged forth and stuck her glass blade directly into the sternum of Azazel. The beast roared as he quickly threw the back of his hand into Faunel's face, the force sending the girl backwards.

"You b!tch!" Azazel roared as a large steady stream of smoke began exiting his sternum wound.

"I asked you nicely." Faunel began as she stood up, her helmet fallen off, her hair falling into place, "But you didn't listen."

"You'll pay!" The beast roared leaping forth.

Faunel quickly struck his incoming claw with her shield, knocking it down. Azazel wasted no time up-thrusting his gnarled horns into her shield. Faunel tried to stand strong, but as the beast drove his horns in further, dark cracks began forming and within moments, the shield burst into shards.

"You swine!" Azazel roared as Faunel fell backwards onto a large pane of glass, the girl quickly leapt off if it as Azazel threw himself for her.

As the girl left the panel. Azazel threw forth his hand and caught onto one of her glass wings. The shards drove themselves into his hand, yet he retained his firm grip.

"Let go!" Faunel yelled turning around and throwing forth her blade, but the demon was ready. Azazel released her wing, just so he could grab her blade. The jagged edge sliced into his hand, but he did not release. With great force, the beast snapped the blade. Faunel let out a scream of pure agony as the shards of the blade, and her hoof flew into the air along with a stream of blood from her now shattered hand.

"You parade as a titan, but you are a worm!" Azazel roared as Faunel fell to the ground clenching her shattered bleeding hoof. The girl's wings fell apart, the shards falling about her body. The glass in the air slowly fell down forming a small cracked platform in the large void.

Azazel laughed as he approached the girl, his hooved feet boldly stomping into the glass as he moved forth brazenly, his arms widespread. Faunel sat on her knees holding her shattered hoof, her feeble form appearing harmless and near pathetic.

"As threatening as you try to make yourself appear, you're still weak." Azazel said placing his long fingers onto the girls shoulder, "But take pride in the fact that your body will go to a much more deserving being."

"No…" Faunel retorted slowly looking up at the beast, a smile spreading across her face, "You take pride in the fact that you had the honor to be beaten by me."

"Oh my, I do believe you've gone over the edge." Azazel laughed slowly digging his fingers into the girls shoulder, "You're completely mad."

"No, I'm just realistic." Faunel replied with a smug grin, "And I had already told you to leave, now I'm forcing you."

"Hahahaha!" Azazel laughed a malicious laugh, "And how are you going to do that?"

"Like…this!" Faunel called out quickly thrusting her shattered hoof through the wound in Azazel's sternum, the shards digging into the beast's soul, Faunel's innocent blood twisting and mangling the maddening core of the beast.

"What are you doing?!" Azazel roared trying to push the girl off as a large cloud of dark steam began outpouring from his sternum, ribs, eyes, and mouth

"Get out of my head!" Faunel yelled once again in a shattering pitch, the beast roaring in agony as she pushed her hoof in further.

**Outside of Faunel's mind**

"I don't know!" Dawn yelled out still trying to regain a constant breathing pattern, Taijus besides her holding her in an upright position, "We tried, but Azazel somehow got in!"

"You have to go back in!" Lance yelled out

"What?! They tried already, you can't force them back in!" Ryan yelled back from besides Mary who also seemed to be trying to regain a breathing pattern.

"We can't just abandon Faunel!" Lance yelled back

"We won't! We just can't be stupid, too much is at stake!" Ryan yelled back

Just as Lance began to open his mouth for a rebuttal, Faunel opened hers. Faunel let out a horrendous banshee-like scream. Everyone turned in shock at the girl to see a large dark cloud of steam exiting her mouth and eyes as she let out the scream. Within moment's the scream stopped and the girl fell to the floor, Lance throwing himself down to her side to check on herself.

Everyone else on the other hand watched as the cloud of pitch slowly formed. First the spine, the ribs, the sternum, followed by the goat like digitigrade legs. Then the inhuman long and thin bone arms with the four long and sharp fingers. A dark ragged cloak formed around the beasts' arms and most of its sternum, fluttering about in undulating tendrilistic motions. Last of all the skull of the beast formed. The horrendous soul held within the beast's sternum lit up, followed by its eyes which let off a horrible red glow. The two intertwining horns atop its head were accompanied by two more horns further along its skull, creating an inhuman shape to the beast's head.

"Azazel." Lance called out as he looked up at the demon, "It's over."

**Chapter 21- It is What It is.**

**Group 3**

"…defeated. Death confirmed." Blackbeard spoke to a small half shattered pocket mirror.

"And what of his companions." Death asked sternly from the reflection of the mirror.

"The bird is dead, confirmed." Blackbeard replied looking back.

"Were there any others?" Death asked

"…well…" Blackbeard began as he looked back to see Jack sitting upright, Luna holding her glowing hand over his chest, "…no…"

"Alright, try to get going, if things go bad with any of the others we could use your help." Death spoke before his image faded away.

"You lied." Bella said as she walked up beside Blackbeard, the group standing atop a deck of shrapnel held together by swirling purple stitches formed by Eric who stood over Domashi.

"Very observant." Blackbeard retorted stepping forth past Gwen who sat beside the body of Eddie

"But why?" Bella insisted

"Look around." Blackbeard said turning to face the girl, "There's so much madness in the world right now, so much evil and horrendousness. Yet look. We survived. A witch with the strength of a god, a death scythe, another witch, a powerful kishin and a…whatever the hell Judai was. They attacked yet we managed to survive with as many as we did. They're telling the truth…they weren't going to kill us."

"How can you be sure they're telling the truth?" Bella asked

"The woman I love happens to be the physical embodiment of truth." Blackbeard replied with a grin, "I know truth when I see it."

"So honest question…" Eric called out, "The hell was Judai?"

"I thought he was a kishin." Skylar called out sitting down, her large sword pointing into the sky like a flag-pole, "Like an actual kishin, like Asura."

"I figured he was a clown." Ben replied, "A manifestation of madness."

"He was the whore." Luna called out

"Jeesh, we know he was a jerk but that's just low." Blackbeard retorted

"No you idiot, the whore of Babylon." Brian retorted, "…sorry captain…"

"The Whore of Babylon?" Gwen asked looking up

"A being which will rise, spread its madness through words, and seek nothing more than chaos." Luna explained, "I don't know how he was created, when he was created, but he was the Whore of Babylon…a very powerful monster…"

"So where exactly are you going?" Skylar asked abruptly, "I mean, the DWMA wants you all dead."

"Two witches, a death scythe, and a madwoman." Brian said with a smug grin as he, Eric, and Luna gathered aside Blackbeard and Bella, "Funny how such a rag-tag group can be considered a threat to the mighty DWMA…..truth be told…I have no clue where we're going."

"Probably won't be anywhere near here, that's for sure." Eric added

"And I've never been a fan of the witch's realm." Luna added

"So you have no place to go?" Ben asked

"Maybe not, but I have Rebecca." Brian replied simply, "In the end, it's like they say…home is where your heart is. And she's owned my heart for years, as long as I'm with her, I will be happy."

"As cheesy as that sounds…" Blackbeard began as he glanced behind him to see Flint rising to his feet beside Lock who hugged him tightly, "I understand the strength love can have."

**Group 4**

"We have got to start thinking of names!" War called out happily, a thick cigar protruding from his lips

"'ow bout Ozzy te' secon." Oswald replied swirling the glass in his hand

"How about dead!" Legion roared leaping at War only to be grabbed by the throat and slammed into the ground

"That's a terrible name!" War said sternly, "I'm War not Death! Ozzy! Get the pendant!"

"Pendant?" Sister Ashley asked, "That weird do-dad you got from a Siberian shaman?"

"Do-dad? No, me-dad." War retorted placing his foot atop Legions chest, "But yes."

"'ot it." Ozzy called out running forth with his hands filled with maps, small skulls, bones, and a long chain with a small pendant

"Don't you dare put me into another prison!" Legion roared thrashing on the ground, "I have suffered for far too long! I will escape again!"

"Yeah yeah, you can say it all you want." War said pulling the pendant from the rubbish and lifting it high in the air, "But I guess we'll just have to see."

"You cannot contain me!" Legion roared, War's foot pressing the beast down

"Oh I think we can." War shrugged messing with the shining pendant

"But master, why don't we kill him?" Sister Ashley asked looking at the monster on the ground, "We've already killed dozens of his allies, why not him?"

"Tell me, what makes a good soldier?" War asked turning to the girl, "Taking lives, or saving them?"

"Saving them I suppose, but…" Sister Ashley began

"I don't know how this monster escaped hell the first time, and I can't exactly go check." War spoke out calmly and surely, "But I can imprison him, and make sure he doesn't escape. He will be in my control, my hands, no one will be able to help him. It's a simple concept, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure…now…say goodbye to sunlight, this is the last time you'll see it."

"I will have my vengeance!" Legion roared, "You'll be dead!"

"No…" War began lifting the pendant high in the sky, swirling aura beginning to come off of it, "…I'll be Dad."

**Group 2**

"So tell me, what was it you said?" Asura said in a mocking tone as he walked through the stone and cement rubble, the chunks of rock all stained red, a thin layer of the red substance covering the ground the kishin walked across, "Every human life is of infinite value?"

Kid pushed himself backwards on the ground, his body covered in dust and blood, his figure exhausted, battered, and bruised. Asura continued onwards with his confident strides, his tendril-like wrappings fluttering about behind his head, their ends covered in the thick pulp.

"I just killed seven hundred humans." Asura continued as he licked his stained fingers, "So if all humans are of infinite value, then you've already failed in your goal."

"I'll only…fail…if I let you continue…" Kid groaned trying to rise to his feet

"Oh?" Asura questioned before his buckled wrappings shot forth and grabbed Kid by the arms, lifting him into the air, "You weren't very good at math were you? Seven hundred infinites is the same as six billion infinites. The fact that you've let anyone die at my hands is reason enough for you to give up."

"If I quit, it will be because of me…" Kid groaned

"Look over there." Asura said smugly pointing at the ground, a bloody pulp covering a cracked camera, "That's a news camera. That means thousands of people saw you fail to save those people. They saw you fail to save your own comrades…men…women…and even the children. Oh and it was such a shame too, the way they cried, the way they begged. The way the madness wavelength hurt them, pushed at the back of their eyes, scratching, trying to make its way inside. Yet they all fought, they all ran, and in the end, they all amounted to the same thing…a bloody pulp on the ground and a soul in my stomach."

"It's funny isn't it?" Kid groaned, "In a time where demons are roaming the earth, the most horrible creature…was a human…"

"Hahaha!" Asura laughed manically before one of his tendrils suddenly ripped forth, pulling Kid's arm off from his body, a burst of blood spraying forth as Kid dropped to the ground, "It is amazing isn't it?! The potential of humans! We truly are the magnum opus of creation aren't we?"

"You're not a human! You're a monster!" A body groaned from the rubble, a bloody mess so battered it could hardly be recognized

"What's the difference?" Asura asked turning to the being, "Honestly! What's the difference?! You ridicule demons, kishin, and clowns, call them monsters, but why? Because they follow their nature? Humans are nothing more than oily bloody piles wrapped around a twisted soul. They constantly fight their nature! Why don't they accept it? They're given such gifts, such potential, such power! Yet they rather limit themselves because of some pointless concept of good and evil they've created to justify what they like and punish what they don't!"

"Humans have flaws…that's what makes them human…" The being replied wiping the dirt and blood from their face, revealing a large circular chunk of flesh missing from their cheek, "But we don't blindly follow instinct, we don't hide behind nature as an excuse…"

"Are you kidding?!" Asura laughed, "That's all you pitiful creatures do! Have you ever heard of the Salem Witch Trials? All it was was projection, displacement, cowardice! Justification! It is the epitome of what being human is! Refusing to accept! Finding some justification for doing what you want! Killing in the name of righteousness rather than saying what it really is! Killing because humans want to kill!"

"No…you're wrong…" The girl replied looking at the beast, her eyes not filled with fear, rather filled with pity for the kishin, "There's so much good humans have done, so much greatness, so much potential to continue to do good. We better ourselves, we make up for mistakes, that's what being human is, moving forward. Of course we've done evil and will continue to do evil, but that doesn't make us human, our ability to learn from mistakes and try to make them right is what makes us human…"

"Shut up…" Asura muttered

"You just can't face the fact." The girl said rising to her feet, her chest covered in blood, yet a golden star managed to peer past the blood, "You look at one side of the coin instead of both. For every act of madness, there is an act of love, of hope…of courage…"

"Shut up!" Asura roared, his tendrils thrashing about throughout the air in a sphere of destruction, the ground being ravaged by the beast

"She's right…" Kid groaned rising to his feet, his wavelength expanding, "Demons, clowns, and kishins may have madness, and madness may be potent, but humans have courage."

"Courage is what drove all of us to fight you, even though we had fear." The girl, Tsubaki continued, her large eyes peering into the soul of Asura

"I said…shut up!" Asura roared, his wavelength expanding as he leapt forth at the girl, the sharp spire protruding from his mouth as he flung himself through the air.

The beast went straight for the heart of Tsubaki, yet inches from her chest he was stopped. Kid stood upright, his arm reattached and grasping the weapon of Asura. Asura looked up to see two lines of Sanzu attaching atop kid's head, his eyes pure white as his body flourished with energy.

"Trying to destroy what you fear." Kid said throwing Asura backwards, the kishin tumbling across the ground, "Pitiful."

"Hiding from what you fear is cowardice." Another voice called out, the pink haired him rising from the ground, her bottom lip and chin covered in blood, her face bruised, "You hide again and again, hoping for what you fear to go away…you do the same thing over and over expecting a different result…it's madness."

"I'll kill you all!" Asura roared leaping back at the trio

"No." Kid retorted leaping forth, striking Asura in the face with a punch, the impact creating a wavelength of energy which threw the beast backwards hard into the ground, allowing Kid the chance to stand upright and straighten his bloody suit "You've had your chance. Now it's our turn."

**Group 5**

Veritas brought her claws down straight across the Kishin. It took but a second for the flesh of the beast to fall apart into four clean slices, transforming into a soul before it could even hit the ground.

The small elder known as Famine leapt forth through the air, landing in the chest of a large clown. The beast radiated insanity, yet Famine was unaffected. The golden scale Famine held in his hand was soon driven into the clowns forehead. As the eye-design of the scales mid-point touched the beast, the creature began withering away before the eyes of those on the battlefield. Within seconds the monster was nothing more than dust.

"They keep going…" Elinor muttered to herself looking up at the fighting around her, her helm covered with dust and a pitch-like substance from her fighting, "As long as there's something to fight for, they keep trying."

Thor brought down his large hammer directly atop a kishin, flattening the madness embodiment into a fine paste. As his hammer struck the ground, sparks of electricity shot off the weapon, the speckles of lightning stretching off of his arms and shoulders too, as though he was a lightning rod.

"What on earth drives them?" Elinor asked slowly turning to see a figure approaching her. The figure walked calmly, with long strides and a plain demeanor, as though it was not in the battlefield. Elinor didn't slowly lifted her sword, the creature covered in shadows calmly approaching closer and closer.

"You are needed elsewhere." The figure said simply, Elinor looking with confusion as it suddenly disappeared.

"What the…?" Elinor began before the figure suddenly appeared directly in front of her, standing inches away. Yet before she could swing her blade, the mysterious being put its hand on her shoulder and the two disappeared.

Famine the Kid turned to see the open space. He felt uneasy, as he felt something wasn't right, yet he had not seen the situation and had no idea of what had happened. The heir to Famine stood holding his kopesh looking around for his next opponent, the disappearance of Elinor going unnoticed.

**Group 1**

Silence overtook the group, everyone circling around the new embodiment of the beast. The cold air stood stagnant betwixt the gathering. Ryan looked back and forth between his companions and the monster, the visible cloud of his breath slowly dissipating. The scythe in his hand glimmered in the setting sun's light. In its reflection the face of Ian glimmered, his eyes set on the beast as well.

Archer clutched his bow and released it as though it were some stress management device. A single bead of sweat fell down his forehead, the salty droplet stinging the wound on the side of his head, his injured eye twitching about as though it didn't function properly anymore. Within the bending arm of his bow the reflection of Greg shimmered, the boy staring with determination at his task.

Dawn stood aside Taijus, the candleholder she held in one hand shining light between the two. Dawn stared at the demon, her gaze far less confident than it had been before. The bare reflection of Mary shimmered in the candleholder, she too looking far less confident than she had been. Taijus on the other hand felt acceptance. Living a life of constant fear, panic, and stress, Taijus felt something new: content. Whatever was to come, Taijus accepted it.

The boy saw the panic on Dawn's face, the worry in her gleaming eyes, and all he could think to do was a simple act. The boy slowly moved his hand beside her free hand. The skin of the two lightly tapped before Taijus slowly wrapped his fingers around the witches. Dawn looked at Taijus for a moment, the boy giving a small comforting grin, before she two began grasping his hand.

"Stop that." Azazel growled, Dawn turning to see the beast staring at her and Taijus, "Stop, or I'll rip your limbs to shreds."

"I've been waiting for this opportunity." Taijus said looking down at the ground, "Because of you, my best friend killed himself."

"It isn't my fault he knew he was going to die anyway." Azazel laughed

"No, he didn't just die." Taijus replied slowly looking upwards, his soul wavelength expanding, "He weakened you…and gave me the strength I need to kill you."

"You?" Azazel retorted, "Don't make me laugh!"

"I'm not joking." Taijus replied with a smirk as chains slowly began protruding from his back, the silver pieces clanking against each other as he released Dawn's hand and lifted his hands up, Azazel's look turning to a joyous expression.

Taijus stood up tall as his hands both transformed into a braiding of chains with his fists turned into thick metallic spheres bursting with spikes. The web of chains from his back made a sort of cape, the ends undulating back and forth, up and down in serpent-like fashion.

"I'll destroy you." Taijus called out as swirling aura began forming around his head, slowly making a black-plate knight helm.

"Just try." Azazel sneered

"Die!" Taijus yelled out as he leap forth at the beast, bringing down his flail arms in a v-shaped motion downwards. The vector of force had much magnitude, yet the beast managed to avoid it simply by leaping up.

Taijus quickly looked upwards, the demon in midair, yet the monster only smiled. Azazel shot his hand forth and grabbed Taijus by the scalp. The chains on Taijus' back shot forth at the beast, yet he quickly slammed the boy into the ground hard, a crater of impact forming.

"That was anti-climactic." Azazel teased

"I'm…not…done!" Taijus yelled, his chains shooting upwards, Azazel being caught amongst the web of pieces

Taijus quickly pulled himself up to his feet, his nose bleeding, a trail of blood smeared across his mouth and chin. The chains all wrapped around Azazel, constricting and separating as though they tried to pull the beast apart.

"There's something you don't understand." Azazel began as he slowly stopped moving, the chains still wrapping tight, "I'm not just some kishin…I'm a demon…I'm Azazel!"

Azazel ripped the chains from his body and swung them over his head, bringing Taijus into the air. Azazel tossed the boy forth into the sky, everyone watching in panic as Taijus turned himself in a frantic trashing.

Dawn watched amazed, the image of Taijus reflecting in her eye. The vivid eye of Dawn acted as a mirror as the chains of Taijus all wrapped into a large sword being brought down onto Azazel. The beast threw forth his hands and caught the chain formed weapon within his fingers.

As Azazel began to pull on the chains a sudden burst struck his shoulder. The beast quickly turned his head down to see an arrow protruding from his shoulder. Before the beast could react, the arrow exploded.

"This is stupid!" Archer yelled out as Taijus landed, a dust cloud still dissipating from where Azazel stood, "Why the hell should we just stand here and attack one by one?!"

"Because…." Azazel's voice suddenly arose, "…when you don't, you piss off what you're attacking and risk getting everyone killed faster."

Suddenly through the smoke Azazel shot forth, his long arm outstretched towards Archer. Before Archer could pull his bow string back, the fingers of the beast were wrapped around his head and slamming the boy into the ground.

Taijus threw forth some of his chains which wrapped around the monsters wrists, pulling the demon back. Yet Azazel was not deterred by this and simply spun around and stomped on the chain, pulling it tight between the two.

"Is chaining yourself to the thing trying to kill you really such a smart move?" Azazel asked with a malicious tone.

"Maybe not." Taijus replied with a small chuckle, "But it does distract the thing trying to kill me."

Just as Taijus said this, Archer leapt up from the ground and jammed an arrow into Azazel's eye. The demon quickly tried to strike the boy, but the chains held his arms down for just the moment Archer needed to duck down. Within a second the arrow exploded yet again, this time in a much more controlled blast, directly into the face of Azazel.

"Don't stop!" Ryan yelled out as he leapt into the air, his scythe above his head, "Stop and you're dead!"

As Ryan yelled this out, Archer turned to him, in that moment Azazel's hand shot forth. Yet Ryan brought his scythe down with ferocity, piercing the forearm of Azazel as it came forth, knocking it away from Archer.

"I must say, it's surprising to see common sense these days." Azazel laughed as he walked from the smoke, half of his skull a steaming pulp, his remaining eye letting off a steady red stream of aura.

"Everyone! Go!" Ryan yelled out leaping forth with his scythe.

Azazel quickly blocked Ryan's first swipe, then as the boy swung the weapon around, the beast dodged the second swipe. Azazel laughed as he swung his arm back, striking Ryan and sending the boy flying.

Archer leapt into the air, his bow drawn with three arrows pulled back pointed at Azazel. Azazel leapt after the boy, the three arrows flying down, yet the beast shifted quickly. Before Archer could react, the demon was at his face and grabbed the boys head within his hands.

"You are all infants, crying, throwing a tantrum." Azazel said throwing Archer back to the ground with force before landing, his face reforming into an elongated skull, his four gnarled horns growing, two spires beginning to protrude from his back, "You think that your toothless bite will protect you from the wolf. But you are doomed."

Archer groaned as he pulled himself up, red saliva falling from his open mouth, his breathing heavy. Taijus stood up, his chains rattling. Everyone stared as the wavelength of Azazel began expanding, the monster regaining his strength.

"Your eyes have not yet developed, you live in the darkness, but unlike you, I see." Azazel continued looking around at the ground, his hollow eyes staring into everyone, "Ryan. Ian. Archer. Greg. Lance. Dawn. Mary. Taijus."

The group looked back and forth amongst each other, the smoke from the crashed plane clashing with the setting sun, creating a somber glow amongst the group. Clashing with the somber sky floated the red glowing eyes in the hollow sockets of Azazel's skull, a small stream of steam coming from his eye sockets. The spires from his back looked broken and chipped at their ends with steam coming from them.

"Let me open your eyes." Azazel continued holding out his hand, a dark tendon forming across his forearm bones, "Humans did not achieve their status as top of the food chain because of their generosity, they got there because of their ferocity! They're a cruel and malicious species! Oh how I miss the old days, when a starving parent would eat their child. They knew that if they died, the child would die anyway, yet if they lived they could make another child. They were so determined to live. That's what made your pathetic species worthwhile! So focused on survival! Now you've lost it all. Now you're infants, all being sheltered from reality. Your concerns are so petty. You've lost the value of survival. Now. I'm going to remind you all why you once feared the dark."

Archer quickly pulled back his bowstring, yet before he could release his fingers Azazel seemingly disappeared. Within a flash, Azazel shot forth and grabbed Archer by the chest and swung the boy around, tossing him into Ryan. Ryan quickly caught his comrade, yet Azazel shot forth and threw his muscle-covered knuckle bones directly into Archer's stomach, the force throwing Archer and Ryan backwards.

Taijus let out a large yell as he sprang forth after Azazel, his chains all rattling as he moved. Azazel quickly ducked his head and with a sharp upward thrust threw his horns into Taijus. Taijus screamed in agony as Azazel allowed his body to fall off onto the ground.

"You son of a b!tch!" Lance yelled as he came down with his spear, Azazel quickly sidestepping and in a mocking strike using his palm to hit the boy away.

"I have no mother, that is an earth concept." Azazel laughed, a few patches of skin forming across his chest, "You humans are so obsessed with limiting everything to your simple concepts."

"For the last time, I'm not a human." Dawn called out stepping forth, her soul wavelength expanding.

"No, you're right, you're the witch." Azazel laughed stepping forth, a few tufts of fur forming on his goat-like legs, "Humans are newborn infants, witches on the other hand are teenagers. Sure your eyes are no longer covered in darkness, but you have no perspective on how to react to what you know. You claim you love chaos, yet you cling so loyally to order. You live an unexamined life. A life not worth living."

"Than it will be all the more embarrassing when I defeat you." Dawn snickered

"Ready?" Mary asked, her face glimmering in the candle-holder in Dawn's hand

"Ready." Dawn smiled, "Soul Resonate!"

"What do you think you're going to do?" Azazel asked with a laugh, "Enter my mind?"

Dawn let out a loud yell as she and Mary began resonating. Their wavelength increased manifold. Dawn's light blonde hair began fluttering about, yet not as though through wind, rather as though she was in water. Her wavelength began pushing against Azazel, the beast grinding his teeth at the energy.

"Actually, no." Mary's voice called out as flames began whipping about from the candle, the flames whirling around Dawn in a flaming vortex, "There's more ways to fight than mental combat."

Azazel watched interested as the flames embodied the shadow of Dawn. The flaming effigy quickly rose upwards forming a body. Azazel grinned at the flaming vixen, a glowing petran cross forming in her chest above her sternum.

"That's something new." Azazel said looking at the newly formed effigy, Dawn placing the candle holder through its back, resting it where its heart would be.

"When a human and a witch resonate, they have different abilities normal resonation doesn't have." Mary said, her avatar having no mouth, yet the words still sounding.

"Then you shouldn't disappoint me." Azazel snickered, his torso almost entirely reformed

Mary and Dawn both shot forth, Mary in front, her avatar covering Dawn for a moment as they left. Azazel readied himself, yet as he threw forth his clawed fingers, the two separated, his claws flying between the two. Dawn threw her knee forth into Azazel's stomach, as the beast cringed, Mary brought down her leg atop Azazel's neck.

Azazel tumbled forth, yet regained his footing. Dawn and Mary did not hesitate, the two shot forth yet again to assault the beast. As Dawn threw forth her knee, Azazel brought up his hand to catch the attack. Mary shot forth her fist, yet the beast also caught it, and with a swift corkscrew motion, threw the two girls backwards.

"Come on, surely you can do better than that." Azazel mocked rotating his wrists, his bones popping and crackling

"You have a bad habit of doing one thing right and assuming you have it all figured out." Mary called out, her petran cross searing in her sternum, "You know, you're actually kind of a sad creature. Your ego is so inflated that you think only you can possibly have true knowledge, everything else is ignorance, weakness."

"You prey on doubt. You believe that as long as you hold to your false sense of strength, everyone will fall before you." Dawn added, Azazel's eyes losing their previous arrogance.

"I'm sorry." Mary muttered, her doubt fading, her sense of empathy surprising and annoying Azazel, "I'm sorry you can't be wrong. Because that's what makes life valuable. Being able to change yourself. Being able to change with others, rather than feel the need to change others."

"So your idea of life is fallibility?" Azazel asked, his voice raspy and grating, "You think that because you are a being of ignorance, you somehow have some knowledge into joy?"

"Who's the one inflated with pride, getting upset, and refuting someone else's beliefs due to superficial reasoning?" Dawn asked, "We are simply standing for what we believe. Just as you are. Yet we are doing so with respect, rather than effrontery."

"You think you're better than me?!" Azazel growled, "You think that your ignorant bliss gives you superiority? You are blind! I simply try to allow you to see!"

"No." Mary shook her head, "You aren't trying to help us. You're trying to help yourself. In some sick twisted way, you think refuting us strengthens yourself. But you're wrong."

Azazel let out a loud intensified roar before shooting forth with fury. The beast took wide sweeps, the girls dodging left and right, ducking and leaping to avoid the attacks. Azazel growled, more red aura steaming from his eyes with each enraged swipe. Mary threw forth a punch, yet Azazel quickly shot his claws forth through her bosom, grasping the candle-holder within her avatar and ripping it apart.

"You talk too damn much." Azazel growled as he kicked Dawn in the naval, the witch stumbling backwards, the candle-holder still grasped firmly in his hand.

"Let go of me!" Mary yelled from her candle form

"Fine!" Azazel roared throwing the candle-holder as far as he could through the air, the object soaring high into the air.

Yet as Azazel began to laugh, something shot into the air after the item. The beast growled as the large set of wings flew forth, Ryan flying to catch the candle in the middle of the air.

"Why the ovaries…?" Dawn groaned as she rose, clenching her midriff.

As Dawn witnessed Azazel leap for Ryan, she felt a sudden violent throb in her body. Dawn groaned as her hair began standing up on end, her body freezing despite it feeling as though she was on fire.

"Fall…down…" A voice whispered inside of Dawn's head

"W-what?" Dawn groaned as she felt a dribble of blood fall down from her nose

"The body cannot take another hit like that." The voice whispered

"Yes it can, I can still move fine." Dawn retorted watching Ryan swing his scythe at Azazel.

"Not your body, hers." The voice responded

"Hers?" Dawn asked, Ryan piercing Azazel with his scythe and shooting to the ground to smash the beast

"Much has already gone wrong, yet it can be fixed." The voice whispered, "The pain your body is going through is a response. One of your eggs must survive, yet another attack like the one you just experienced and it won't. Only then will this world be doomed."

"I don't fully understand…" Dawn began

"Luna." The voice simply stated. Dawn standing for a moment before falling to the ground, finally realizing what she was being told.

"I won't stop until you die!" Ryan yelled, a flame-like aura around his body, his wings outspread as he swung his sword at Azazel

"Then you're in for a long job!" Azazel roared back as the blade stuck in his shoulder, piercing through with ease, yet not slicing the beast in two.

Azazel threw forth a punch, hitting Ryan back, yet Ryan quickly swung around and stabbed Azazel through the abdomen. Ryan wasted no time in kicking the beast away from himself. As Azazel staggered back, Ryan pulled back his sword, Ian quickly transforming into a much larger buster-blade. The enormous blade pulled down on Ryan's shoulder, yet with ferocity Ryan brought the enormous blade down directly onto Azazel.

Azazel let out a loud screech of agony, his torso splitting into two halves. Yet Ryan was not finished. The wavelength of the boy expanded even further, his eyes starting to change colors, his iris' turning purple. The enormous blade transformed into the ring-blade form of Ian.

Ryan quickly spun the blade around, slicing Azazel once, then twice. Ryan spun the hula-hoop like weapon around and around, taking swipes at Azazel second after second.

"Because of you two of my friends have died! With this hand…!" Ryan began as he pulled his arm back, Ian momentarily disappearing, the wavelength of the two combing. Ryan's fist began glowing a dark purple aura, his hoodie sleeve searing on his arm, "I hold the strength of vengeance!"

Ryan threw forth his fist, letting forth a blinding purple flash as he struck the sliced mulch of Azazel. The searing flash stretched far throughout the land. Ian transformed back into his human form, falling down alongside Ryan, the two drained of all energy, their wavelengths shrinking to nearly fatal levels. Yet as the two fell they each had astoundingly simple thoughts. Ryan merely noted the smell of grass in the air. Ironically Ian noted how their fighting had trimmed the grass around them to a kempt level.

"What was that…?" Lance asked rising to his feet, looking at the unconscious duo on the ground just in front of a steaming crater in the ground.

"Gua-a…" A gasping choke sounded off. The groan sounded wet and crackling, painful and barely sensible. Yet it occurred, and its source was most upsetting.

"No…f^cking…way." Lance gasped, open jawed, in a state of pure shock as he witnessed a thin bloody string of nerves and bone shards pull itself erect

"That…hurt…" The 'head' of the pulp groaned, the only feature distinguishing it as the head being half a tongue and a red steaming 'eye'.

"How…can it still be alive?" Lance asked as a pitch-like substance began dripping from the beast, a thin root-like network wrapping itself and fixing itself as the beast's new body, "How can it still be alive!"

"That…hurt…" Azazel groaned, his steaming pulp of a body twitching spastically, his wavelength greatly reduced

"Azazel!" Lance yelled pulling forth his spear and pointing it at the beast

"I've been nice…" Azazel groaned, his goat-like skull slowly reforming, "but now…I'm going to skin every last f^cking one of you! I'm going to drain your f^cking blood and use it to paint a self-portrait of me shoving one of your f^cking heads up another's f^cking p!ss-hole! You ungrateful little f^cking tw ts!"

"Dude, I get it, you're pissed." Lance mocked, "Don't worry, everybody has those days."

"Rachel will…" Azazel began with a malicious smile, his slimy half tongue slipping across his reforming mouth, "How about I wear your face as I rape her into the new millennia? Who knows, maybe she can be lucky and conceive my seed."

"You son of a b...!" Lance yelled launching himself forth, Azazel smiled, yet before he could move his hand to block, Lance struck the beast across the jaw.

Lance quickly flipped around his spear and with a wide swipe, sliced across the reforming torso of the beast. Azazel growled, his blood gurgling in his mouth before he struck Lance in the face and sent the boy tumbling across the ground.

"You know…" Lance muttered, a small dribble of bloody saliva falling from his mouth as he rose to his hands and knees, "You've caused the death of my friends. You tormented my friends. You beat us. You insult us. And truth be told, you're a hell of a lot stronger than us…Right now…pretty much the easiest thing I could do is quit…But I'm not going anywhere. You don't just give up halfway through. That's not the point. The point is the challenge, the path, the road to victory. If you don't have that, then it doesn't mean anything…and if you don't lose something along the way, then you don't deserve it."

Lance's wavelength began expanding, his spear lengething to a much longer weapon, its extravagant spearhead glimmering. Azazel's pitch-like sustenance reformed into a crude humanoid body, the liquid bubbling and swirling in its form. The goat-like skull of the beast's head had five gnarling horns, a crude inscription of an inverted pentalpha forming in the beast's stomach.

"You act as though I am the monster here. I am nothing more than an entity. You humans are the real monsters. You are beings of free will, made in his image you know? But free will is hilarious, a joke really, so easy to adapt." Azazel began with a twitching smile, "You sharpen the human appetite to the point where it can split atoms with its desire; you build up your egos larger than skyscrapers; you connect the world to pass every tiny eager impulse; grease even the dullest dreams with these green-gold-plated fantasies, you do all of this until every human becomes an aspiring emperor, becomes his own God... and where can you go from there?"

Lance came down with his spear, a wide swipe. Azazel dodged to throw a clawed swipe of his own, yet Lance brought forth the shaft of his weapon to clock the blow. Lance spun the weapon around, twisting Azazel's arm with an inhuman wet snap. Lance thrust forth his spear, piercing the near center of the beast's chest, revealing the swirling orb of the beast's soul, buried in the creature's body.

Azazel threw his hand backwards, slapping Lance, yet Lance spun around, his weapon slicing straight through the demons cheeks. Azazel's bottom jaw slapped open and shut as he threw forth a vicious kick into Lance's stomach.

"I…pity you…" Lance muttered standing up tall, his wavelength expanding, "You put up such a strong front, yet it is a mask. You're a scared child, pissed off at daddy, taking it out on your step brother."

"You're a child with a false sense of strength." Azazel retorted, "You put so much faith in invisible beings, hoping the fairies will give you strength, hoping the invisible prankster you call a deity will protect you. You just can't accept that you have no control. You have to pretend you have some form of control over everything. You're lying to yourself for comfort."

"You know what…?" Lance asked, "Maybe…Maybe we do lie to make ourselves feel a bit better. Maybe we do have a bad tendency to justify what we've done that we shouldn't have. But being human isn't about being perfect, it's not about blind faith, it's about mistakes, it's about doubt. Heheh…you know…it's a gift. Really. Doubt isn't a sign of weakness, it's a sign of strength. Seeking answers, it's a part of life. Why would we be given such an intelligence? Why would we be given such a thirst? Seeking answers is never bad, examining your life makes it worth living."

"We fail so that we can learn…." Archer groaned

"We cannot dwell on failure, we must look forward…" Greg added

"F-faith isn't believing without proof, it's trusting without reservation…" Taijus moaned

"Faith which does not doubt is dead faith…." Mary squeaked in a somewhat meek voice, "Doubt isn't the opposite of faith, it's an element of faith…"

"To those who have dispelled all doubt and perceive Truth, Heaven is nearer than earth." Dawn added, Azazel growling at the words being spoken

"Simplemente ser una buena persona y difundir la comprensión en lugar de la agresión, la ignorancia, o el odio." Ryan, still with shut eyes, managed to groan with a small breath of air, his voice meek, "Eso si que es. Manténgase en movimiento hacia adelante"

"Teña fe en Deus. Porque en verdade vos digo que, calquera que diga a este monte: Ergue-che e lanza-te ao mar ', e non dubidar no seu corazón, pero crer que as cousas que di será feito, que vai ter o que di. Por iso vos digo que todo o que preguntar cando orardes, Crede que recibistes, e será así convosco." Faunel spoke out in an odd language as she sat up, "Sei que as cousas están difíciles, pero a dúbida é un paso importante na xornada, non se desespere, alegren se, non se debruzouse sobre o pasado, no canto aprender o seu pasado e seguir adiante."

"Y-you're still alive?!" Azazel growled in shock looking at the fawn sitting up

"Now do you see?" Lance asked spreading his arms out as the shibushen all began resonating, their wavelengths enhancing Lance, his soul's aura expanding drastically. As his wavelength expanded, his spear began transforming into an enormous lance. Around his shoulders a glowing set of plate armor began forming. "We've all lost much, but now we have to keep what's important in mind. We need hope. We need to believe that there's something better out there…"

As lance said this he shot forth in a blur, Azazel panicking as he lost sight. Lance reappeared directly in front of the beast and pulled his fist back with ferocity.

"Because I'll be damned if monsters like this can roam free!" Lance yelled as he threw forth his punch directly into Azazel's face, the wave of impact forming in the air, sending the beast straight into the air, "And in the end, I have the one thing that's needed to win this fight. The one thing you'll never have! I fight for my goddamn friends!"

Lance shot upwards into the air and punched Azazel in the face again. Azazel was not passive, the demon threw forth punches as well, the two locking in a punching frenzy. Each punch would create an area of impact visible from the ground below. The two shot apart, floating in the air several meters apart from each other.

"Let's Go! I'm sick of your bullsh!t! We're going in now and there's no turning back! No More!" Lance yelled flying forth at Azazel, "Today we stand and fight! Welcome to Earth!"

In a moment of intense energy, the warmth heating the ground below. Lance shot forth, his lance drawn. Azazel roared in rage, his eyes flaring like great flames. Lance flew forth and struck his weapon directly into the center of Azazel's chest, and within seconds, the weapon pierced straight through the monsters soul. The beast roared in an intense screech, its jaw's flesh ripping as it screamed in agony. Lance yelled in passion as he drove himself further, his weapon piercing further and further into the monster. After but a moment an explosion of red aura filled the air, every last particle of the demon dissipating through the sky. The only thing remaining being Lance in the middle of the air, his lance drawn, his wavelength palpable, the demon defeated. The battle, won.

**Chapter 22- Keep Moving Forward (Epilogue)**

"Where am I?" Elinor asked wondering through the rocky mountain pass she found herself on, the sun set, the moon providing the light she followed, "And what the hell was that thing?"

As Elinor pulled herself up a small incline, she found herself overlooking a large plain. Even more surprising was what she saw, people.

"What happened?!" Elinor said in a panic as she quickly began making her way down the sharp incline towards the small gathering of people aside a large metal wreckage, "Are you okay?!"

As Elinor reached the first body, she noticed the severe wound it had across its eye, its body beaten. It was a boy, and most peculiarly, she felt like she knew the boy.

"We…" The boy on the ground moaned, his eye slowly pulling itself open, his energy rising for just a moment, as though Elinor had brought him the nourishment, "Did it…"

"What?" Elinor asked falling to her knees beside Archer, the boy.

"Oh no…" Archer groaned looking up at Elinor, "I died?"

"What? What makes you say that?" Elinor asked placing her hand on the boy's chest, feeling his heartbeat

"Because…" Archer managed to begin as he started fading, "I see….an angel…"

**Death City-Much Later**

The bell overhanging a door rang as the clean glass plate composing the door moved forward, opening. A steady clacking could be heard as the habitué walked forth. The stepping stopped, the being outstretching their arm towards a small metal dome in front of them.

"Ka-ching!" The small bell clanked in a cheerful tone

"One moment I…" a familiar voice began from behind an opening in the adjacent wall, "Faunel!"

Lance quickly leapt through the bar opening he had stood behind and ran up to hug his good friend. Faunel looked quite different than she had. The fawn now wore a jacket and pants rather than her previous clothing. Her fur once again looked clean and pristine, her body well-nourished and healthy as well.

"You're back?!" Lance asked half as a statement half as a question, his excitement filling the room, "When did you get back?!"

"Just now, I knew I had to visit you first." Faunel replied with a close-eyed smile

"S-sit down! Have something to eat! You must be tired!" Lance stuttered as he pulled a chair away from one of the many tables, gesturing for the Fawn to sit, "Hey Rachel! Get us some food!"

"Get it yourself!" A meek voice yelled in reply from the back

"Some things never change." Lance smiled looking backwards at the kitchen

"I've only been gone about two years." Faunel spoke as she sat down, "Not much changes in that short of time."

"You were gone for most of the reconstruction, a lot has changed in that time." Lance retorted as he too sat

"I know, I've heard here-tell of it." Faunel said looking down

"People are fickle, we all know that." Lance said in a kind tone, "I'm sure once they remember how much good the shibushen does, they'll drop all of this nonsense."

"I just….I just can't shake the feeling that maybe it was our fault, you know?" Faunel asked, "DEMON only really arose because they wanted to destroy the shibushen and everything it stands for."

"That's nonsense." Lance shook his head, "DEMON was going to arise regardless, it's just a matter of who they would have blamed as their source."

"So…how is everyone?" Faunel asked looking up at Lance with a smile, "I've heard you and Rachel have begun…."

"ShhSHhShh." Lance hushed the girl with a smile, "Some things are better left unsaid."

**DWMA-Death Room**

"…and with that, Azazel was defeated, the battle was won." Death said looking at his comrade, the death room empty aside from the two and a trio of mirrors, "It's actually quite sad. Azazel's strength came from his ability to spread doubt, and even at his weakest he still appeared strong. Only when Lance was able to expel all doubt was he able to destroy the beast."

"Most interesting. Azazel was quite the fool." The ally spoke waving his white cane in the air, "He believed doubt to be a sign of weakness, rather than strength."

"He was a mad genius." Death retorted, "It wasn't really doubt he preyed on, it was ignorance. He knew mankind's true weakness wasn't doubt, it was ignorance of doubts true role."

"Do you suppose the fool will ever come back?" Excalibur asked leaning on his cane

"I'm not sure." Death replied with a small sigh, "If he does, it won't be soon. Not for a few millennia at least."

"His physical embodiment was destroyed at an atomic level." Excalibur nodded

"Indeed." Death nodded, "So there's no telling what has happened to his essence right now. Who knows if it will even be able to regenerate…?"

"So Shinigami….what exactly did happen to everyone?" Excalibur asked abruptly waving his cane around in the air, "I actually am a bit curious."

"To be honest." Death began as he looked into a mirror, "I don't really know…"

**Unknown Location, India**

"Do you still keep in contact with them?" A feminine voice asked in the island kitchen, a young woman and man walking around performing some menial task

"Not really…" The young man replied turning around, his deeply tanned skin taught over his average physique, his glasses stuck in place before his eyes, "Truth be told, I don't really want to be in contact either…They put my life in constant danger, they nearly killed your mother…several times…and overall, it's true. The reason bigger and crazier monsters arise is because of the DWMA."

"I think that's a bit harsh." The blonde haired young woman said turning around, her vivid bright blue eyes peering at the light red haired girl before her, her eyes locking with the two fused pupils, "I think, if the opportunity presented itself I would love to speak with them. But, I've done my part. I've served my time. I fixed the mess I created. I just want to live my life now. I don't want to have to constantly fear what will happen if I die in the middle of combat. I stopped to take care of you."

"Take care of me?" The red haired woman asked, looking just as old if not older than the other two, "I can take care of myself…why don't you just say the truth…you stopped because you want a family. You want another child. I mean it's fine. Everyone is moving on. Even Archer is, and that's one guy I never expected much from…but…he's doing something…"

**Elsewhere**

"Two boars, a good hunt." The eye-patch wearing man known as Archer called out as he and Greg hoisted a large boar carcass onto the back of a cart being pulled by two horses.

"So tell me…" Elinor asked as she stepped off the carriage, her body adorned in a fine cloth dress, her head holding a golden crown high, "Which do you prefer? Hunting boars, or hunting monsters?"

"Well in fairness, after the last monster I fought knocked the stuffing out of me, I found you." Archer smiled, "So it had its perks. But then again, something about being a king is kind of amazing. So I think I'll have to say boars."

"Well your royal highness," A sarcastic voice called out walking forth with an enormous boar over the beings shoulder, "Would you like the boar's pelt or not?"

"I want to eat it all!" A growling voice interrupted

"Shush!" The original feminine voice retorted

"It's fine." Archer smiled looking at the girls, Skylar's, face, "You can have it all."

"Excellent…" The mouth on Skylar's stomach grinned, its slimy teeth shimmering in the light, "I bet the idiots that stayed at the DWMA don't get to eat like this!"

"Those 'idiots' are my friends." Greg growled at the mouth

"How are they doing?" Skylar asked throwing the enormous boar down onto the ground, "Do you still keep in contact?"

"Of course I do…" Archer replied wrapping his arm around Elinor and staring up into the sky, "The DWMA is an ally of this kingdom…and they're still my friends. I know for a fact Lance is content where he's at. And Ryan…heheh…."

**DWMA**

"I don't believe it. She really is back." Ryan laughed entering the restaurant beside Mary before he wrapped his arms around Faunel in a hug, "It's been too long, how are you?"

"It's great to see you." Faunel smiled as Mary hugged her, "I see you two are still together?"

"Actually…" Ryan began

"I'm becoming a nun." Mary smiled.

"Really…?" Faunel asked perplexed

"I'm currently dating a shibushen," Ryan shrugged, "But that doesn't mean we aren't good friends still."

"I was only gone two years, how could so much change so drastically already?" Faunel asked sitting down

"Well we were kind of face to face with madness." Ryan chuckled, "And the world then decided they hated us, makes someone reevaluate their life."

"Change is a part of life." Mary added, "I don't regret a thing, it all morphed me into who I am today."

"That's a very cheerful view on life." Lance laughed as Rachel dropped off a tray of drinks, brushing her hand over his shoulder as she left

"Figure we have enough pessimist to have negativity covered." Mary shrugged, "I'll go ahead and be different, I'll be positive."

"Jeesh, I'm still trying to wrap my head around everything that's changed." Faunel shook her head

"What do you expect, there's no easy way to tell someone everything that's changed over two years in a simple concise way." Lance laughed, "That's like…like trying to sail a sea in a day…"

**The Atlantic Ocean**

"Any land yet?" Blackbeard asked looking backwards, sunglasses over his empty eye sockets, a cool drink in one hand, and the hand of Veritas in the other

"No captain!" The doll Gwen called back holding her tricorn down over her head, her long jacket flapping in the wind

"Perfect!" Blackbeard called back leaning further back in his chair, "Ah, this is the life."

"Isn't this just neglecting your responsibilities to have fun?" Veritas asked stirring her cold drink, the small umbrella in it clinking against the glass

"Hey, I spent nearly two full years keeping the horsemen sane, I think I've earned this time off." Blackbeard replied

"Well…" Veritas replied with a smile as she stood up and slowly lifted her leg over Blackbeard, lowering herself to sit atop him, staring into his glasses, "I will say, you did a great job at keeping things running…maybe just this once…you're right…it's not such a bad idea to take time off."

"The world's falling to pieces, and we just sail on." Domashi groaned leaning against the railing of the ship

"The world's always falling to pieces." Duncan retorted patting the hulking beast on the back, "And for once, we kept it together surprisingly well, I think we've earned the break."

"Yeah, just relax." Bella cheerfully called out walking forth in a floral sheer dress, "Try to look on the bright side of things. Death the Kid had a son, little Nex is adorable! Same with that death-scythe Soul's kid, Aura, she's a little angel."

"So we got babies out of it all, woo." Domashi groaned

"Bro, we didn't just get babies." Brody called out walking forth in flip flops, a straw hat, and an open Hawaiian floral shirt, "We defeated, nah, we destroyed the whore of Babylon, dozens of kishin, dozens of clowns, the entirety of the DEMON organization, two actual demons, and the original kishin, Asura, himself."

"Yeah, don't be upset because of the people being jerks." Duncan reassured, Flint and Lock running about behind him, "We did a good job."

"Yeah…" A voice answered, two scarf ends fluttering from the darkness of the cabin as its owner stepped forth, "Through all the madness of this ordeal…we still somehow managed to keep things running…"

**Unknown location**

"…And my gift is letting them believe that." Luna said with a smile looking back at her sister Mabaa

"I still do not fully understand." Mabaa spoke

"I had adjusted every step of the path, making sure it all was fixed." Luna smiled looking up at the sky, "I knew Dawn would turn on me. I knew Eric would befriend Brian. It took meticulous planning, but I worked the strings of each of these puppets, making it seem as though they all made choices out of their free will. Granted I kind of got sloppy towards the end, I probably could have gotten Elinor and Archer together more subtly than using teleportation."

"And what of your assistants? What happened to them" Mabaa asked

"Brian, Rebecca, and Eric are living in Russia. They live in a small town, enjoying a life as the local guardians." Luna replied, "Granted Rebecca is not fully sane anymore, but Brian's loyalty is compelling."

"And the older shibushen?" Mabaa added

"Aside from those that died, including Black Star, they defeated Asura." Luna began, "And Tsubaki was actually pregnant, and she birthed a child in fact. All the survivors are livening surprisingly content lives, although they have an occasional pts. episode."

"So what does it all mean?" Mabaa asked unsure, "Lance ended up with Rachel, and she was barely in your tale. I thought he would fall for Faunel, but she seems to simply be present. Ryan and Mary never ended up together as you had made it seem. Ian stayed the same. Daniel died. Archer seems to be the only one who really got a happy ending, and that's only due to your tampering. The older shibushen have merely gone back to their life's, with a few deaths in fact. So…why?"

"You're oversimplifying." Luna said calmly closing her eyes, "Dawn and Taijus fell in love, they adopted a child and they will eventually have a child of their own, the child that was the entire point of this. The same can be said with Archer, he found love in Elinor, and they will have another child of legend. Ryan and Mary had something different, they didn't have true love in the same sense as Taijus and Dawn, rather, they had true love in terms of friendship. A very pure love that few ever achieve despite having the ability to achieve. Olivia, Gwen, and Skylar all cheated death and found joy even in their disfigured states. Blackbeard found his responsibility, he stepped up and kept order. Death found that Kid could in fact take over when the time comes. Liz had a child, Nex, the Shinigami line will be carried on. Brian found friendship in Eric and proved his love for Rebecca, even doing what he did not want, just to assure he could be with her. Famine the kid proved himself. His father survived, I can't even imagine a world without him. But you know what? This story is really about something simple. Although some things are inevitable, not everything is. Lance survived, Faunel Survived, Eddie… survived. Three names that would never have been remembered. They didn't just escape death, they conquered it. They did not submit themselves, they fought. Truth be told, one small hiccup caused so much chaos, yet good still came…

If nothing, this was an interesting twist of fate reminding us just how precious life is."

**The End.**


End file.
